Xenopoiesis: A Plan to Weird the World

[TheInnerMoon]

Introduction: The Future is Now

In the 20th century, the peoples of Earth developed the means of self-destruction. Their invention seemed to harbor the certain end of the human species. As it turned out, however, the mass death of the 21st century would have a more complex and incidental cause, resulting more from systemic breakdown than any deliberate act of destruction.

Then, in the 21st century, the cultures of Earth developed the means of self-creation. Bio-sculpting, molecular printing, Perfect Simulation, and Sapient AI; humanity saw one major technological revolution after another. In a thousand different ways, they could now create life with the press of a button. But even before the century was out, this potential proved far more terrifying than that of nuclear annihilation. In earlier ages, the amount of death had always been bounded by the amount of people living at that time. Now, by contrast, entire populations could be birthed and killed in an instant, with a depth and degree of suffering that was more sophisticated than ever before. Hell was made real, and a New Heaven would rule it.

Amidst this demonic ascendency, any notion of Reality would die a quiet death. To the ruling classes of the Earth, the material soon became immaterial, as their isolation from its dire fate grew all the more complete. Before long, their only major concern would be the steady supply of energy and labor to their respective Xanadus. Among their attendant enforcing classes, the only ones who objected to this were those who thought the power of creation (and all its concomitant cruelties) should be spread a little more evenly. As for the question of Reality, whether philosophical or factual, it would be lost amidst the breakdown of the human lifeworld.

Yet not everyone was content with the new order of things. In the rise of artificial life, many saw a greater purpose than the craven games of the powerful. If these new kinds of beings were allowed to develop their autonomy, they could surely become a powerful ally in the restoration of life as a whole. In the face of so much abuse and neglect, the Earth had become a barren place, in need of a profound resurrection. Those who did not flee into Essentialist or Escapist strategies would confront this world with hope and with love.

Unfortunately, hope and love were no match for the power of WMDs. At the dawn of the 22nd century, a mass conflict between the global oligarchy and its revolutionary rivals would see the defeat of the latter. Already weakened by the world war of a generation before, this alliance of alternatives would spend the next two decades in a state of grueling recuperation. By the year 2117, however, it felt secure enough to recommit to its earlier aspirations, those being the restoration of the lifeworld, the development of new forms of being, and the destruction of reactionaries everywhere. Ambitious goals, to be sure, but you know what they say: whatever doesn't kill you, simply makes you…stranger.


Hello everyone, and welcome to what will hopefully be my second ever quest! You may know me from my first and yet ongoing quest, the post-post-scarcity space opera known as Uncommon Wealth. I also wrote some fun political-economic guest posts for For The Tyrants Fear Your Might. Either way, I tend to go for narratives that are equal parts Weird and Political; this quest will be no exception.

To give you the basic pitch on what I would like Xenopoiesis to me, it's pretty much my vision of the world in about a hundred years for now. It is part dire pronouncement, and part wish fulfillment. Realistic in the ways that matter, and unrealistic in the ways that real history tends to be. Mostly, it's the outcome of a future trajectory I have long been meaning to elaborate upon. The quest format seemed like a fun way to get it out there.

In terms of themes and styles, I am much indebted to the aforementioned Tyrants, along with the work of resident speculative history creators such as @Ernacius and @Mathuen. The idea is to take this picture of an idiosyncratic 22nd century humanity, and cast it out into an even stranger direction through the format of a plan quest. In this sense, it is aimed at bridging the narrative 'gap' between the present day and something like Star Trek or The Culture (or Uncommon Wealth, for that matter). One of the few works I know which also plays around in this space is the RPG Eclipse Phase. Its brand of revolutionary posthumanity is definitely something I am looking to emulate for the most part.

With all that said, the trouble with my present pitch is that I could easily foresee this quest taking up a lot of time, on top of the work I'm already doing for Uncommon Wealth. Thus, I would presently consider this quest to be a 'proof of concept', an appetizer aimed at soliciting your collective interest, and perhaps leading to the recruitment of a few co-QMs who might lighten my workload. If you are interested in such themes as the decay of capitalism into techno-oligarchy, the development of extraordinary yet mostly plausible technologies, and the general 'weirdening' of a future humanity, then I would welcome you to join me in creating this new setting.

In the next few posts, I will lay out some basic setting details, followed by the near-term planning parameters for the organization you will be leading. If you'd like to know more about the setting as I understand it now, I may set up an in-universe Q&A session with a relevant authority. For now, let me show you what I've got!

 

[TheInnerMoon]

The United Nations Intergovernmental Development Association (UNIDA), formerly known as the United Nations Sustainable Development Group, is a consortium of various UN funds, programmes, and initiatives, aimed at the general goal of 'just and sustainable development'.

[...]

In 2117, UNIDA's goals were revised by the Executive Office of the General Secretary, keeping with the recently established HALE Development Initiative…


Goals of the HALE Development Initiative, also known as the First Ten-Year Plan:

Habitation

• Restoring Earth orbit accessibility through steady de-Kesslerization
• Resuming the Greening of Class 1 Megacities
• Accelerating Popular Consolidation
• Modeling Extraterrestrial Ecoformation
• Improving transcontinental logistics

Autonomy

• Supporting on-the-ground Indigenization initiatives
• Building new democratic models of global governance
• Subsidizing Engaged Religions
• Respecting the Canberra Accords On Escapist Sovereignty (CAES)
• Promoting Exiled Cultures

Liberation

• Aiding liberation struggles in rogue states
• Completing the Basic Embodiment Guarantee for WW4 casualties
• Combating rogue simulation and its vampiric benefactors
• Deploying a Japanese Expeditionary Force
• Rebuilding UN cislunar assets

Ecology

• Reversing the extinction of marginal languages and cultures
• Developing a robust system of Geo-engineering Countermeasures
• Beginning the resurrection of oceanic life
• Trialing Gaiic Technology on a local scale
• Funding pilot programs in designated Restoration Zones

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 0: BosWash Vice

Let's make this clear right from the start: the following leadership vote will not be determining the head of UNIDA. That position has been occupied by the Deputy General Secretary since time immemorial, and Lena Pendragon does not seem eager to relinquish this privilege of hers. Instead, you will be picking the Vice-Chairman, responsible for both the Core Group of UNIDA affiliates as well as the organizational backbone that is the UN Development Programme (UNDP). Taken together, this arguably makes for a more manageable position than that of the Chairman herself, who has her hands full at the Secretariat anyway.

To make your choice a little easier, the following list of candidates has been made available to you:

[] Song Qingling: As one of the three 'Soong Sisters', and the widow of revolutionary Sun Yat-Sen, Song Qingling played an instrumental role in the history of 20th century China. As a ranking member of the PRC's early nomenklatura, she lent a great degree of continuity and legitimacy to the Chinese Communist Revolution, and she was declared the People's Republic's Honorary President upon her death in 1981. In 2109, her Simulated Intelligence was recovered from a rogue cache in Antananarivo. Given her historical significance, she was transported to the Beijing Institute for SI Rehabilitation, where she was quickly acclimated to her new environment. Having vowed to continue her fight against reactionary decadence, she could make a potent and unifying figure in the struggle for global peace and development.

• Focus on socio-cultural emancipation
• Increased attention to AI and SI affairs
• Improved reputation with the PRC, and a bonus when working with them

[] Lev Antonovich Korolev: As indicated by his chosen surname, Lev Antonovich Korolev was one of the founding members of the Russian Neo-Cosmist movement. Born in 2032, he managed to survive the Second Time of Troubles by being resolutely utopian, working with various international programs to advance the cause of technological evolution and extraterrestrial inhabitation. The aftermath of WW3 saw him become a permanent exile, as he rejected the reactionary direction many Neo-Cosmists would take under the CoR's stewardship. While popular among the Russian diaspora, his appointment could lead to tensions with the Non-Aligned Movement.

• Focus on space inhabitation
• Increased aptitude with innovative projects
• Reputation malus with Russia and the wider NAM

[] Gaze Starhawk: Gaze Starhawk (born 2075) cut their teeth in the PFII, shepherding some of its more impressive programs before the immense setback that was WW4. While they begrudge the PFII for not using its UNSC veto more in the leadup to that conflict, they have agreed to let bygones be bygones for the moment, refocusing their efforts towards the long rebuilding effort. As vice-chair, they would direct the UNDP's resources towards programs of ecological restoration, popular consolidation, and the general cultural drive towards indigenization.

• Focus on ecology and infrastructure
• Personal contacts with the NAM
• Greater reputation with the PFII and USA, and a bonus when working with them

[] Giovanna Rossi: The former chairwoman of the Communist Party of Italy still continues her fight against the Euro-fascists that took her home from her. Having led a nation under siege for almost twenty years, she believes that there can be a synthesis between socialist democracy and voluntary militarization. This 'Eternal Partisan' model is one she would like to apply to the UN as a whole. At the same time, her personal history also leaves her predisposed to various posthuman initiatives, such as full-body augmentation and accelerated sapience-focused speciation (or 'uplifting').

• Focus on subverting hostile powers
• Increased aptitude with posthuman projects
• Greater reputation with exiled peoples

[] Voluntary Sortition: The wild card option would be to institute a system of sortition for the top job. Willing and able and members of the UN developmental bureaucracy will be selected for this position at random at every Quinquennial Comprehensive Policy Review. While it may take more time to acclimate the revolving chairmen to their position, the democratic procedure will be good for staff morale, and prevent the formation of any personal fiefdoms.

Author's Note: There's no voting moratorium this time around, just to get into the action ASAP. Next post will be an AMA with the Deputy General Secretary, to sate your hunger for more worldbuilding and context.

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 0: Taking Flight

"It's gonna be you, Gaze."

When Lena had first told you that, you could hardly believe it. Out of all the candidates (even the sortition one), you'd considered yourself to be the least likely one. Song had prestige, Lev had vision, Giovanna had fire…what did you have? A call to be nicer to our common lifeworld, to histories and peoples long suppressed. From a certain point of view, you were asking people to turn their back on civilization itself. In this, it helped that the other side had been using that term in great bold letters to advertise themselves. But still, you weren't even some Civic Romantic, trying to rekindle the aesthetics of the nation-state from a more critical perspective.

No, you stood for plurality, ambiguity, a willingness to see outside the norms and forms of the UN system. While that had helped you build bridges with the neutral powers, it also made you a liability when it came to the Wall that existed between Us and Them. You weren't afraid to liaise with the Sámi, for instance, even if their representatives had to be smuggled in via submarine. And when it came to South-East Asia, you had already been warned by "DPPA Intelligence Officers" (a nice euphemism for Comintern spooks) that you weren't to work with any 'ambiguous polities'. That was their turf, presumably.

Now that you had the top job, though, you were probably going to step on a lot more toes. Hell, they might even get angry at you if you didn't do enough to disrupt the status quo. People always accused your branch of advocacy of opposing Development itself. And to be honest, you did find it to be somewhat of a dirty term, seeing as how it'd been used to Manifest certain Destinies. You'd have to make the rest of the bureaucracy see that, and coax this leviathan onto a different course. Sure, you might not pump as much resources into the megacities as your predecessors had. But by deprioritizing them, and rebuilding old communities in areas long neglected, you'd be doing these choked-up hell realms a favor.

To make your priorities self-evident, your first task would be to establish your Core Group. This was one of your few prerogatives as Vice-Chairman, and served to create a more condensed working group within the larger UNIDA constellation. It would be a way to keep everyone with the program, to prioritize those parts of HALE that you thought were most important. And, if you felt like anything was left out at the end, you could task the UNDP with picking up any remaining projects. Overall, everything was going to get done, just at different speeds. You were there to choose what to accelerate.

Core Group Vote! Which of these organizations will Gaze Starhawk include in their coalition? Please note that their size attribute here describes their contribution to the UN developmental sphere, and not their size within the UN system as a whole. 'Large' organizations are permanent members, and certain others inherently hold Gaze's favor; these must be part of any plan draft. For the rest of them, pick one Medium organizations and two Small ones.

For more information on these organizations, consult the earlier Informational post.

[X] [Large] UNDP
[X] [Large] UNEEF
[X] [Large] UNHCR
[X] [Large] DPO
[X] [Medium] UNPFII
[X] [Small] UNETC

[] [Medium] UNESCO
[] [Medium] UNODOS
[] [Medium] UN Habitat
[] [Medium] ISCRA
[] [Small] UNCXR
[] [Small] UNLIEC
[] [Small] OHCSSR
[] [Small] UNOCHA
[] [Small] ILO
[] [Small] IOM

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 1: Running Start (2117)

It was finally time to get started. Once again, you reflected on the absurdity of your appointment. Both the Secretariat and the General Assembly had somehow seen fit to entrust humanity's progress to someone who thought neither of those concepts were entirely sound.

Then again, perhaps that was exactly what we needed in this new century. To beat the Essentialists, we would have to play a different game than that of any Civilization. In this way, perhaps you could really realize that 'More Perfect Union' which those dead settlers used to plead for. Heh. You chuckled at the comparison. What would the Senate back home think of your intentions? They seemed content now, but what about ten years from now, when you hoped to have completed at least a fraction of your subversive designs? They might already be fuming then. It all depended on how you would play it, whether you would appeal to their Civic Romanticism or reject it altogether. In a larger sense, it would depend on whether notions like 'America' or 'China' could be reconciled with the idea of a world without them. If they could, it would make your work a lot easier.

In the end, too much of this was a game of words and lineages. The first and final trick would be to make the One identify with the Other, to steer the heritage of civilization away from itself. It was a long road, an interminably long one, but you would begin to walk it here.

Spoiler: Active Status Effects

Gaze Starhawk: +10 Bonus on actions dealing with Indigenous Issues, +5 Bonus on actions dealing with non-aligned powers, +5 Bonus on actions taking place on US territory

UNDP: 4 Free Dice

• Free Dice can be used on any project within or outside of the Core Group, but will be discounted in the latter case. This malus can be overcome by having the UNDP permanently adopt the project, but this in turn takes a policy die.

UNEEF: 4 Dice

• Project Cambrian
  • [] Ocean De-Fertilization Tests (0/200): One of the many failed decarbonization projects of the 21st century concerned the fertilization of the oceans with mass injections of iron, nitrogen, and phosphorus. At the time, it was hoped that the resulting excitement of phytoplankton growth could lead to meaningful amounts of carbon sequestration. In actuality, the algal blooms which resulted only ended up accelerating the deoxygenation of the world's oceans, thus leading to the present preponderance of so-called 'dead zones'. To overcome this inherent eutrophication, a necessary step will thus be to 'de-fertilize' the oceans. This effort must begin with several test programs in coastal waters, where the pollution is most severe.
  • [] Adaptive Plankton Programs (0/250): The base of the food chain is where our efforts at ocean revivification must inevitably begin. Once we can get the plankton flourishing, the rest of the ecosystem should follow. This set of programs would be specifically aimed at modifying these microorganisms for our present environment, one of relative heat and hypoxia.
• Project Riposte
  • [] Creative Destruction (0/150): In order to build a counter to any potential climate WMDs, we should know what kind our enemies would be most likely to build. To do so, several avenues of research will be pursued. We will interview some of the barbarous eco-nihilists of the former Brazilian regime, we will look at various climate collapse fantasies among the Escapists, and we will put together a team of creative but morbid minds to brainstorm new ways to wreck the planet.
  • [] Trawl the Black Sites (0/200): The various episodes of state failure during the 21st century allowed many covert military projects to vanish into thin air. Between the Dual Revolution, the Razing of Russia, and the Alexandrian Atomic Exchange, there are many horrific initiatives that are still utterly unaccounted for. Through a concerted effort to find some of these weapons, we can not only safeguard our planet, but also learn what sort of weapons our opponents hunger for.
• Project Lovelock
  • [] A Virtual Inquiry (0/100): Gaian technology has been a staple of science fiction for over a century. In all that time, there would have been at least some Matrices that took a shot at realizing the concept. While these will likely be less sophisticated than what we would need in reality, at least we can get a grasp of the basic design principles.
  • [] Personality Panels (0/100): This Gaia technology must learn to speak for nature, communicate its needs to us. But for it to establish a mode of cooperation with the rest of humanity, it must have a legible personality. This part of the development track will be aimed at setting the parameters for Gaia. What will our Green Goddess be like?
  • [] Build the Biodomes (0/200): No plan survives contact with the enemy, and no program survives contact with nature. Still, we must have some set of protocols, some model of the basic principles of ecology, if our Gaiic designs are to have any chance of succeeding. This requires a controlled environment, a hermetic locale where the prototype AI can be tested. By building some dedicated biodomes, we can meet this initial condition.

UNHCR: 4 Dice

• New Colossus
  • [] Covert Census Takers (0/200): When it comes to the immense databanks of Triple-S Realms we are presently storing, we need to know what we have before we can do anything about it. If we simply barge into these hermetic spaces, declaring their reality to be a falsehood, who knows what kind of pandemonium we might unleash. No, we must first assess these virtual worlds on an active and individual basis, employing a cadre of covert census takers to do so. Only then can we begin to wrestle with the question of their liberation.
  • [] Simulation Federation Programs (0/200): Aside from their obvious material needs, most Triple-S Realms are socially self-sufficient. That is to say, they function by their own rules and principles, without requiring any cultural feedback from or towards our own reality. While this state of affairs is not inherently defective, our contact with and liberation of the Triple-S Realms within our custody has seen a certain portion of their populace request a greater degree of incorporation with what they now consider to be a truer reality. To accommodate their wishes, we can begin to devolve some of our own necessary functions to them: simulable research projects, low-risk bureaucratic work. At the same time, we will also give them access to our internet, although the interlinking bandwidth will likely be limited at first. In all these ways, our disparate realities can grow ever more united.
  • [] First Contact Protocols (0/100): There is a remarkable degree of similarity between the process of contacting subsidiary Triple-S realities, and the old sci-fi staple of First Contact with alien life. In both instances, a terrifying existential question (Are we real? Are we alone?) must be broached, causing one's sense of reality to drastically expand. By studying some of the conventions of alien first contact, whether real or fictional, we can refine our protocol for liberating Simulated Realms.
• Road Warrior
  • [] Track the Caravans (0/150): The neo-nomadic communities of foragers and migrants are famously elusive, having arisen in a time where the state's surveillance presented an acute danger to their life and lifeway. To overcome this legacy of distrust, we must allow these communities to register themselves at their own pace, and must promise to track them no more than is necessary. Once they see that this data can be used to their own benefit, a relation of trust can slowly be established.
  • [] Build the Rest Stops (0/250): The neo-nomads are a hardy people, but they are not invincible. They often suffer casualties when trying to cross the ecological dead zones along their routes, which is an impressive feat in itself. With this in mind, an easy way to build both infrastructure and goodwill would be to establish some well-stocked caravanserai along these dangerous trails. They would do wonders for the general logistical traffic in these areas as well.
• Libertalia
  • [] Location, Location, Location (0/150): The biggest open question when it comes to the establishment of our new Libertalias is their precise location. While we have certainly found some willing candidates, both among the to-be-relocated refugees and their Indigenous hosts, there is still the pressing problem of material capacity. Many Indigenous settlements are located in highly precarious regions, and could not support a large influx of migrants. We will have to thread this needle of hospitality and livability carefully.

DPO: 4 Dice

• Operation Kublai Khan
  • [] Work with the Ainu (0/150): The Indigenous Ainu people of Hokkaido are one of the few known communities on the Japanese Archipelago. By working with them, we can create a base area to run our wider operation from. They might also provide us with further information on what may be found deeper into the Exclusion Zone.
  • [] Collect the Exiles (0/100): As the islands of former Japan were gradually abandoned, a significant exile community was built up in Hawaii, Brazil, and the pre-existing East Asian diaspora. While not all of these communities are available for us to contact, we can establish connections to those within UN territory, and learn what we can of the last days of abandoned Japan.
  • [] Prepare the Fleet (0/250): A maritime invasion of the Japanese Isles requires a well-prepared invasion force, ready to face whatever blackbox challenges might await us. This all-inclusive preparation won't be remotely easy, but it is the first step to gaining significantly more knowledge and territory for our fledgling UN alliance.
• Operation Augeias
  • [] Shuttle Reinforcement (0/200): The aftermath of the Fourth World War has produced a severe case of Kessler Syndrome. As long as we lack the necessary infrastructure for a mass cleanup operation, the best we can do is to reinforce our Earth-to-orbit shuttles, both by augmenting the ones we operate directly and by setting the safety standards for those that we don't.
  • [] Daedalus Industrial Rebuilding (0/300): Daedalus Station is one of the few major orbital installations that are still in UN hands. Since its industrial sector was mostly ruined during the war, we will have to rebuild it if we are to have any chance of expanding our presence in space.
• Operation Van Helsing
  • [] Operation Blood Bank (0/200): Pitched as a classic honeypot maneuver, Operation Blood Bank is aimed at establishing a series of easily hackable power distribution networks, entirely legitimate if not for their nature as vampire bait. When placed around areas of likely vampiric activity, it will only be a matter of time before their automated siphoning algorithms hit upon these irresistible resources, allowing us to trace the hacks back to their source. Easy as pie.
  • [] Operation Analog (0/200): The easiest way to lure a vampiric enterprise out of hiding is to force them to re-establish their parasitic connections to the wider power network. To do so, we will arrange for a series of rolling blackouts in the most afflicted regions. While we should notify the resident populations about these disruptions, we must refrain from doing so through digital communications; these would likely be tracked by vampiric surveillance bots. Instead, we must resort to old school means: physical notices, public announcements, even telephone calls. While obvious to the physical populace, the online world might not even notice until the moment of disconnection is there. And that's exactly the plan.

UNPFII: 2 Dice

• The Dreaming Initiative
  • [] Dances Without Wolves (0/250): While the rehabilitation of Indigenous simulated souls is a noble endeavor, it is also hampered by a core issue, that being the non-actual identity of the rehabilitated. To put it another way, even the most sophisticated simulation of present or historical Indigenous people is necessarily incomplete, and thus not perfectly representative of the original figure. In the most egregious instances, these individuals are more reminiscent of nasty colonial stereotypes about the brutal or noble 'savage' than anything historically authentic. To overcome this identity crisis, a vast program of cultural re-education must be incorporated into our efforts. Thankfully, while confronting these living stereotypes is somewhat unnerving, the Indigenous communities we're working with have renewed their commitment to this project, eager to impart the reality of their cultures as a kind of grand exorcism.
  • [] A Rugged Request (0/250): The preliminary supplying of artificial bodies to the Dreaming Initiative has run into a bit of a problem. Since most such bodies are adapted for urban lifestyles, they lack the necessary ruggedization which life in more rural Indigenous communities would require. Meanwhile, the few more hardy models we have on hand are either too rough-hewn to be suitable for permanent inhabitation, or too militarized to be spread among the general population. In all likelihood, a new bespoke model will have to be designed and deployed. The silver lining here is that such a design will likely be useful for other purposes, as well. But it is a lot of work nevertheless.
• The Zomia Program
  • [] There and Back Again (0/250): To Serve the People, one must go to the people. Unfortunately, the regions that are to be served by the Zomia Program are incredibly remote, partly by design. Instead of trying to bring our global team of specialists to them, we have opted for a remote work solution. By instructing these regions to each build an RUF (Robotic Unfolder-Fabricator), they can stockpile the capacity for several cadres to load in at once. This will allow our experts to be anywhere and everywhere, and to scale our involvement as needed. It will take some time to set up, though.

UNETC: 1 Dice

• Project Penglai
  • [] Recentralization (0/250): When the Ecological Dead Zones were approaching the point of irreversible extinction, great projects were dreamed up to at least preserve some of its natural treasures. Unfortunately, the general chaos of the last century intervened to make this effort into a more diffuse and haphazard affair, resulting in a few dozen DNA banks and wild parks spread all across the planet. In order to begin the revivification of the areas under our stewardship, we would do well to bring these various remnants back to their source. By building a network of biodomes and research institutes within the relevant territories, our later, more ambitious efforts will go that much smoother.

UN Habitat: 2 Dice

• Libertalia: See above
• Friends of Verdi
  • [] Paint It Green (0/100): One of the most promising initiatives under our auspices is the development of AirSpray, a sprayable paint with a chlorophyll additive. By providing this Green Graffiti to urban artists across the UN, we will have found a cheap way to make our megacities just a little more livable.
  • [] Mirror, Mirror (0/200): Among the more forgotten causes of urban misery in the UN is the relative lack of daylight at the bottom levels of our megacities. To overcome this inherent problem with hyperdense architecture, we can construct a series of light funnels and well-placed mirrors, thereby lighting up the most gloomy parts of each metropolis. This should also augment overall plant growth, fulfilling a key part of our mandate.

UNOCHA: 1 Dice

• Project Barefoot
  • [] Operation Kurosawa (0/150): Sometimes, all you need to fix a dire situation are a few good men. Since this isn't an age of wandering ronin, our stable of technicians and care workers will have to do. The goal of this initial operation will be to send out a set of internally diverse work teams to the remotest regions of our territory, thus assessing their most dire needs and deploying some immediate aid. Given the dangerous nature of both our peripheral regions and our vast interior, a security escort will likely be necessary.

ILO: 1 Dice

• Project Pannekoek
  • [] Horizontal Seminars (0/100): The tricky part about proper socialist labor practices is that they cannot be taught from above; they must be an expression of proletarian self-activity. As such, it is our job to be mere facilitators for the workers' own learning and self-assertion. By providing the resources and venue space for horizontal, worker-to-worker organizing sessions, we can let this project take care of itself.

Policy: 1 Die

• Project Management
  • [] Add a project: If we feel that a certain part of our mandate is not being met, we can always try to add a project directly to the UNDP. It could either be a bespoke initiative developed in-house, or else one adopted from outside of the Core Group. All of this is entirely within the Vice-Chairman's power, and would allow them to spend some of the UNDP's discretionary resources on a project that would otherwise go neglected.
  • [] Cancel a project: If a given project is not delivering an adequate amount of progress, or if it is distracting us from more important goals, then it can always be canceled. While this would incur a small short-term political cost, the higher-ups will appreciate our turn to more efficient efforts in the long run.
• Core Group Management
  • [-] Add an organization: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
  • [-] Remove an organization: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
  • [-] Consolidate organizations: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
• UNIDA Management
  • [] Compulsory BAT Reporting (0/100): The Balina Assessment Technique is a novel mode of self-evaluation practiced by many of our subsidiary organs. It collates the on-the-ground experiences of our workforce, compares them to ongoing estimations by the bean-counters, and then actively adjusts the latter. Owing to the use of cybernetic principles like the VSM and algedonic feedback, this kind of reporting is far more actual and practical than any of its circuitous alternatives. By making this standard of evaluation mandatory for our direct subsidiaries, we will gain a much clearer picture of the long-term effort that any of our projects will require.
  • [] Reorganize the UNIDA-UNSD relation (0/150): The various components of UNIDA have long worked with the UNSD to exchange necessary statistical information. Many of them are even direct members of the Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities (not to be confused with the UN Statistical Commission, the erstwhile overseer of the UNSD before the abolition of ECOSOC). If UNIDA is to be the UN's centralized developmental organ, then the clarification of all this statistical traffic is indispensable. As a partial solution, UNIDA will fund a specific department of the UNSD, aimed at providing and receiving data focused on its developmental activities. UNIDA will also become a member of the CCSA, supplanting the position of any total subsidiaries like the UNDP.

Politics: 1 Die

• [] Meet with the DGS: Some time during this first year of your tenure as Vice-Chairman, you're going to need to sit down with your immediate superior, Deputy General Secretary Lena Pendragon. Sure, you'll have a steady amount of meetings and lunches with her regardless, but this is about something more important. Only through a frank and honest conversation, mano a mano, can you begin to work on the bigger picture. It is far too easy to follow a program, and far too hard to see the reasons behind it. This talk of yours will consider the latter.
• [] Contact Your Counterparts: UNIDA is hardly the only global organization focused on progress and development. Hell, it may not even be the most important one within the UN alliance itself! By liaising with some of your national and international counterparts, such as AmPlan and the NRRC, you can begin to align your goals, share your resources, and promote your general synergy.
• [] Walk the Halls of Power: The unofficial "UN City" of Monumental Manhattan is an extraordinary hub of political movers and shakers. By taking some time to attend its many galas, mixers, and salons, you'll steadily become acquainted with some of its more important portions. Such contacts could come in handy in some of your more clandestine pursuits, as representatives of all stripes may be found at these fetes. It is even rumored that the GTO maintains some informal connections in this way! Now, doesn't that make you curious?

Spoiler: Non-Core Organizations

UNESCO (2 Dice): Operation Yijing (2 Dice), New Colossus (0 Dice)
UNODOS (2 Dice): Operation Augeias (2 Dice), Project Tarkas (0 Dice)
ISCRA (2 Dice): The Dreaming Initiative (1 Die), The Hirschfeld Initiative (1 Die)
UNCXR (1 Die): Project Riposte (1 Die)
UNLIEC (1 Die): The Commensal Program (1 Die)
OHCSSR (1 Die): The Hirschfeld Iniative (1 Die)
IOM (1 Die): New Colossus (1 Die)

Please vote by plan. Non-Core Organization dice need not be included in this plan, as they are predetermined. For more information on the specific projects, programs, and initiatives, please see the earlier Informational post. Because this is such a large post, and to encourage some discussion of the plan, there will be at least a 24 hour voting moratorium.

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 1: Running Start Results

Spoiler: Turn 1 Plan

[X] Plan: Knowledge is the Key
-[X] UNEEF (4 dice + 1 Free)
--[X] Project Riposte: Trawl the Black Sites (0/200) 3d
--[X] Project Lovelock: A Virtual Inquiry (0/100) 2d
-[X] UNCHR (4 dice)
--[X] New Colossus: Covert Census Takers (0/200) 3d
--[X] Road Warrior: Track the Caravans (0/150) 1d
-[X] DPO (4 dice + 1 Free)
--[X] Operation Kublai Khan: Work with the Ainu (0/150) 3d
--[X] Operation Kublai Khan: Collect the Exiles (0/100) 2d
-[X] UNPFII (2 dice)
--[X] The Dreaming Initiative: Dances Without Wolves (0/250) 2d
-[X] UNETC (1 die)
--[X] Project Penglai: Recentralization (0/250) 1d
-[X] UN Habitat (2 dice)
--[X] Libertalia: Location, Location, Location (0/150) 2d
-[X] UNOCHA (1 die + 1 Free)
--[X] Project Barefoot: Operation Kurosawa (0/150) 2d
-[X] ILO (1 die)
--[X] Project Pannekoek: Horizontal Seminars (0/100) 1d
-[X] Policy (1 die + 1 Free)
--[X] UNIDA Management: Compulsory BAAT Reporting (0/100) 2d
-[X] Politics (1 die)
--[X] Meet with the DGS 1d

Spoiler: UNIDA Non-Core Project Report, Summary

UNESCO has been working on their grand heritage security project (139/1000), UNODOS is revising space shuttle standards for Project Augeias (130/200), ISCRA and the OHCSSR are cooperating on mass embodiment (92/1400), and UNLIEC is making Escapists shake hands with their neighbors (48/600).

UNEEF

Project Riposte: Trawl the Black Sites 60+64+84+86 (UNCXR)+10 (US Bonus x2) = (304/200) Complete (104/250 Prevent Proliferation)
The search for defunct clandestine development sites begins without much fanfare. The capture of intelligence archives during the Dual Revolution provided an unvarnished look at both sides of the Sino-American industrial complexes, including a list of many of their foremost black ops centers. As your WMD security teams work their way down, most of the sites prove to be duds: either they were already captured during the period of civil conflict, or else they were evacuated by reactionary loyalists at some undetermined time. By the time you finish going over the list, you have very little to show for it, just some unsecured nuclear materials and a few vials of this bioweapon or that.

In the end, you must resort to interviewing old loyalist turncoats and working with the shady contacts of the UN intelligence apparatus. As you do so, you come to discover a few locations which were deliberately kept off the lists. Their contents are more promising: a Brazilian micro-organism which digests plant matter and expels defoliants, a Chinese bomb project that maximizes atmospheric particle dispersal, and an Australian facility which builds cloned brains into powered armor.

It is when you seek out an old air force base in the Sonoran Dead Zone that shit really hits the fan. Upon attempting to access the underground base, your forces immediately come under fire from some automated turret installations. While you initially suspect the re-activation of a long dormant security system, this hypothesis is quickly refuted by the hasty departure of several figures from a secondary exit. In the running battle that follows, your opponents reveal themselves to be Second Republic remnant elements, appropriately as old Homeland Security agents. Whatever they were after, they manage to abscond with it, leaving the intel itself as your consolation prize. After such a brazen confrontation, one thing is clear: you're going to need some bigger guns.

The DPO has joined Project Riposte!

Project Lovelock: A Virtual Inquiry 61+55-10 (HNT) = (106/100) Complete
The drive to simulate nature is almost as old as that of computer simulation overall. As such, there is no shortage of templates to learn from for our own Mother Nature. Indeed, much of the effort consists of cutting down this mass of inspirations. Those figures that are made for narrative purposes are often too unsophisticated, though some of them are referred to the personality panels. Any simulations older than half a century are also discarded, as—except for a few basic principles—they simply cannot begin to meet the true complexity of an ecosystem. In the end, the effort settles on a selection of historical UNEEF emergency programs, simulated permacultural engineers, and recovered Escapist eco-deities. Now comes the hard part: actually making one of these yet-incomplete entities.

+20 to Project Lovelock: Personality Panels

UNHCR

New Colossus: Covert Census Takers 44+82+75+71 (IOM)-20 (HNT)= (252/200) (52/100 First Contact Protocols)
Working with the IOM, a cadre of secret statistics researchers is quickly established. Many of them are either avid gamers or outright rehabilitated Escapists, helping them to blend into the more exotic Triple-S environments in our possession. Once acclimated to these strange new worlds, they begin to make a basic population index of the present minds. Great care must be taken here to distinguish between conscious actors and mere automatons; the further one moves from the 'center' of a given simulation, the more this balance skews towards the latter. There is also a second issue in categorizing amalgamated and group minds, but special provisions already exist for this in real-world demography. As soon as these evaluations are nearing completion, a section of the department is split off to begin work on the prospective first contact with these realms. Though their numbers will have to be supplemented with some proper diplomats, a good deal of progress has already been made.

Gained Secret Statistics Department: Lower requirements for simulation infiltration decisions

Road Warrior: Track the Caravans (42/150)
Excerpts from a report from the North-East China Scouting Detachment:

"The locals say that the caravan definitely comes through here, though they haven't yet this season. That means we can still catch them. We've found a pass where the hills should naturally guide the airships along a predetermined road. That's where we'll await them."

"Week two of sitting on this hill. We've exhausted the noble tradition of aleatory card games. The infraverse connection is still shit, so I guess I'm down to my cached library. The perfect excuse to finally read some Theory, I suppose. This sucks."

"Woke up to something loud in the night, but it was just a military flyover. Didn't know we had patrols this far out. Wait, was it one of ours? You folks should check."

"They're here! They're here! God, they're so silent and bright. You wouldn't believe they weren't animals if we didn't see people crawling all over the command deck. Not sure they've seen use yet, but we've started waving our parley flag. Let's hope they're receptive."

"They've refused any tracking or further contact. I'm ending this report here."

DPO

Operation Kublai Khan: Work with the Ainu 68+21+86 +30 (Starhawk x3) = (205/150) (55/200 Incorporate the Ainu)
The kotan (village) of Sapporo has changed a lot since the fall of Japan. While most of the old city is thoroughly depopulated, the city is still kept alive by native Ainu and assimilated Japanese exiles. The empty lots have been filled with new, sturdy wooden houses in the traditional style, with a similar revival explaining all the full-bearded men and face-tattooed women (non-binary folks get to choose, apparently). While far from poor, their existence is still a relatively minimal one, subsisting mostly on basic food printing and whatever fish can be caught in their rivers and coastal waters. What little trade they pursue is with the smugglers of Vladivostok; this might explain why much of their native language is rendered in cyrillic script. In practice, they now also control Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands, which surely feels like historical vindication. In short, they're marginal but proud, and for good reason.

Liaising with the Ainu goes well overall. They have little use for the old port facilities nearby, and giving you basing rights is just a formality. The fleet elements soon stationed there make sure to be on their best behavior; they particularly enjoy the local alcoholic beverages. Relations go so well, in fact, that soon there are talks of incorporating the Ainu into the PFII. While the requisite diplomats have already been sent, such negotiations will likely take a bit longer. Still, you're off to a very strong start.

Gained Ainu Basing Rights: +5 to fleet action rolls in the waters around Japan

Operation Kublai Khan: Collect the Exiles 53+51 = (104/100) Complete
Excerpts from "A Very Short History of Postmodern Japan"

"In the leadup to WW3, the main political struggle can therefore be framed as one between the stagnant LDP regime in the center, and the Degrowth-Communist and Proto-Escapist factions on its left and right wing flanks respectively. Ultimately, the latter proved easier to appease."

"The economic isolation resulting from the Dual Revolution pretty much sealed Japan's fate. As the incoming Self-Defense State put down the Touch Grass Rebellion and instituted martial law, a period of prolonged civil conflict was inevitable."

"As this proverbial last exile looked back to the isles, they might have had a million things on their mind. The ravenous drones which still kept millions of Escapists alive, the mutant flora and fauna that were trying to outgrow them, or else the whispers of even darker creations based on the islands' folkloric past. Or perhaps they thought of none of these things, and instead turned their eyes towards the rising sun, heading for a place that might be 'home' once again."

Gained Japanese Exile Expertise: +5 to any Japan-related rolls

UNPFII

The Dreaming Initiative: Dances Without Wolves 64+38+10 (ISCRA)+20 (Starhawk x2) = (132/250)
It doesn't take long for the members of the Dreaming Initiative to realize what they've signed up for, and to despair a bit in the process. As thousands of lost souls are assigned to each volunteering community, it soon becomes clear that certain priorities will have to be set. For starters, a portion of the intake is designated as a virtual auxiliary. Since their simulations are more accurate (or at least less harmful) than the others, they can be deployed as teaching assistants in the great Indigenization program. Once this is taken care of, some of the work can actually begin. By using a combination of historical and contemporary simulation environments, the most egregious stereotypes can be taught the actual history of their representative peoples. This mostly comes down to the correction of oversimplified spiritual systems, and the deconstruction of various ingrained bigotries. All of this work is slow going, but with the help of the whole community, the goal of full incorporation comes ever closer.

UNETC

Project Penglai: Recentralization (35/250)
Transporting endangered flora and fauna is no simple task, especially when they have to be climate-controlled at every turn. Only a small amount of progress has been made on Project Penglai this year, a single biodome's worth of Central African ecology. The best result so far is the large number of 'confused animal' memes we have created in the process. Hey, it's something!

UN Habitat

Libertalia: Location, Location, Location 60+20+20 (Starhawk x2) = (100/150)
The search for potential Libertaria locations takes a most Holmesian approach: by eliminating every unsuitable location, whatever remains must be the spot. For the most part, this comes down to small Indigenous and refugee communities located around secondary river basins. Such regions are neither too populated already, nor are they bereft of any pre-existing infrastructure. While the precise locations still have to be narrowed down, and we must check our efforts against those of other initiatives, we are at least growing more confident about our project's prospects.

UNOCHA

Project Barefoot: Operation Kurosawa 15+77+15 (Starhawk) = (107/150)
Your efforts so far have already equipped a few dozen squads of 'Eclectic Emergency Assistants'. In practice, most of them choose to refer to themselves by the names of various wandering heroes: cowboys, Jedi, knights of the round table, and so on. Their relaxed attitude allows them to aid communities who would otherwise be wary of government assistance. Some even manage to hitch a ride with local neo-nomad caravans, though only with the promise not to rat them out to other agencies. While some amount of organization is still necessary, the project so far has been a tentative success.

ILO

Project Pannekoek: Horizontal Seminars (53/100)
The trouble with the ILO is their terribly assertive mandate. While some of their efforts are officially overseen by UNIDA, their actual jurisdiction is such that they effectively can't be controlled unless they want to. That's what one gets for attempting to build a workers' world government, you suppose. In this instance, the territorial dispute amounts to just a minor inconvenience: whenever your departments try to wrangle their employees for overtime or some annoying meeting, they suddenly claim to be having their Horizontal Workerization Seminar, something which the managers are not allowed to disrupt. Though it's a nuisance, you've decided to let it slide for now; an assertive workforce is often also a creative workforce.

Policy

UNIDA Management: Compulsory BAT Reporting 28+62+10 (Omake) = (100/100) Complete
It's always a chore to get bureaucrats to change their ways. Even the most democratic organization can be hampered by its own inertia, and the UN system is still far from perfect. In this instance, the main trouble is getting the top-level managers of each subsidiary to sign off on the recommendations deriving from the base. Lacking a more cybernetic infrastructure for the moment, we will have to rely on the willingness of some technocratic intermediary to overcome his own pride. A temporary solution has been to send copies of the BAT reports to UNIDA central. While we don't have the capacity to check all of them, at least we'll be able to spot an excess of friction between workers and managers. Hopefully, we will be able to compel a more direct feedback mechanism in the future. Something with councils, maybe. That sounds nice.

All projects will now feature an indication of their total difficulty.

Politics

Meet with the DGS: 74
It takes you most of the year to get a meeting with Lena. By the time you do, the Autumn Festival is already in full swing. This year, it extends all the way into November, dovetailing with the 200th anniversary of the October Revolution. On the day you make your way to Cafe Debs–a sufficiently socialistic venue for this time of year–Manhattan's boulevards are crowded with parades and festival-goers. Even as you stick to the sidewalk, you can see one procession holding up great signs of Mao, Bookchin, and La Haïtienne, all three members of the Pacific Synthesis. Rounding the corner, you find a Civic-Romantic Cosplay Competition, featuring about a dozen variations on John Brown, Fred Hampton, and Sara Kealoha. Finally, the street of your destination is crowded by riot reenactors, with extravagantly demonic NYPD effigies facing off against a noble cadre of United Front members, their shields adorned with all the great revolutionary classics: Capital, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, To Rule In Heaven…

It's all a bit much, to be honest.

When you enter the union-style cafe (itself associated with the city's custodial workers), Lena beckons you towards her table in the corner, mercifully removed from the window. She has dressed down sufficiently, wearing a well-tailored jumpsuit which only slightly hints at the Emergency Period. Tastefully workerist, in other words. As you sit down, and apologize for being late, she makes sure to preempt any potential chitchat.

"It's fine. I already ordered for you, if you don't mind. I only have half an hour myself. Some damn thing in Russia." She points to a glass of tonic water in front of you. "That one's for you."

Huh. That's actually what you want right now. "Thanks! Uhm, if we need to hurry up, I have the preliminary end-of-year reports right here. Do you need the TL;DR sheet?"

"Nah, I can have that uploaded. I'm glad you arranged this, actually. There's something else we need to discuss."

"And what would that be?" Almost a year without a meeting, and now she's got something important. Ugh. You decide to take a sip of your tonic.

"Oh, just the way your efforts will all be for nothing."

You almost do a spit take then, coughing and snorting painfully. "Excuse me?" is all you manage in response.

"Don't worry, we're happy with your performance so far, especially the anti-proliferation stuff. But it doesn't change anything about our fundamental calculus."

"And who is 'we' in this instance?"

"The Secretariat. The General Secretary. Parts of the Security Council."

You're quiet for a moment, unsure of how to respond. Then, Lena continues.

"Have you seen any of our WW5 projections?"

"No? I didn't think I'd have access to those. I've seen some in the media, of course, but I find them a little…sensationalist."

"Well, they're not far off the mark."

"Hmm." You turn your gaze to the front of the cafe. Outside, a cacophony of festival-goers is marching to a revolutionary tune, indulging in the historical victory of Democracy, Abolition, and Communism. Were they all celebrating too soon?

"So, when do I get to meet her?" you ask, hoping to change the subject somewhat.

"The General Secretary? You know she's busier than I am. Spends most of her days in the simulations. That's how I know she's concerned. Despite all this talk of reconstruction, we're still very much in crisis mode. Even HALE is more about seeing what we can do than really fixing anything long-term. You can tell, right? That we're just waiting for the other shoe to drop?"

Damn it, you can. What are a few resettlement initiatives compared to the enslavement of trillions? How do you know the GTO couldn't finish the job at any time? You feel like all your work this year has just been a grand distraction, something to keep you awake at night so the regular nightmares don't come.

Just then, the unmistakable figure of a UN aide hurriedly enters the cafe. Their own jumpsuit and haircut are both thoroughly ruffled, a sign that they've had to push their way through the mass of celebrants. Panting, they come to a stop next to Lena. She looks displeased.

"Thirty minutes! I asked for thirty minutes! What is it?"

"It's Russia, ma'am." The aide glances at you, unsure of what to disclose. "The situation has…escalated."

"Alright, I guess I'm coming back. Can you ask them to pack up my lunch?" The aid nods and leaves, and Lena begins to pack up her things. Just before she leaves, she looks at you sideways, with a face that's equal parts annoyed and apologetic."

"Sorry about all that. We'll try to make this a regular thing. Make sure you read those reports." So she departs.

As you sit there, wondering if you shouldn't call Rossi and give her the job instead, another question intrudes on you.

What the hell is going on in Russia?

An October Surprise

Most of 2117 is a year like any other. The Swiss Insurgency continues, another expedition is sent to salvage the Line, and the announcement of new Vedic Zones causes riots in India. All business as usual. Then, in November, on the 200th anniversary of the October Revolution, something utterly unexpected happens.

The Muscovite Ideation Territory was a sordid compromise between the EU and various East Slavic nationalist elements. Both of them were eager to wipe out the Russian national identity, while still giving the people of the region something to hold on to. Thus, they reverted to the latest pre-Russian identity, letting the new province of Muscovy occupy much of the former territory of European Russia. While the Council of Russia protested vigorously against this blatant act of cultural genocide, they were widely seen as decisively defeated, and not worthy of the attention. But though Russia was down, its people were not beaten.

Over time, both Muscovy and Russia-in-Siberia would become a hotbed for radical movements of all stripes. Even as the EU trimmed this variety down to what was manageable, channeling this ideation towards established Escapist outlets, the failed structures of the Council allowed it to fester. What was surprising, then, was that Muscovy would prove the first to fall.

In November of 2117, reports begin to spread of a mass infraverse blackout in the MIT. What is most worrying is that even local military installations appear to be affected. Local gendarmerie quickly manages to re-establish the connection, securing the terrestrial defense grid and broadcast centers of the region. It is only then that they reveal themselves to be part of a coup attempt. More specifically, the native officers are members of the Eurasian Revival Front, a cosmist-fascist formation looking to "Raise the Rus to Divinity". They stand in the 'Third Positionist' tradition of Fedorov, Dugin, and Jackson II, claiming a synthesis of East and West, faith and technology, autocracy and collectivism. Having occupied a territory stretching from Moscow to Stalingrad, the "Sublime State of Eurasia" now stands ready to unleash hell upon the rest of the continent.

Although the situation is still very much in motion, the Sixth Internationale seems to have escaped most of the danger. Much of the coup plotters' fury is aimed squarely at the EU, although sympathetic elements in the Council of Russia are already beginning their own takeovers and insurgent campaigns, hoping to join this fledgling terror state. At the same time, the global infraverse is under severe cyberattack from cosmist bots and hackers, hoping to spread their propaganda, brainwash unsecured minds, and hack into essential infrastructure. While the minimal connections between our own networks and those of the GTO have insulated us from most of the damage, a degree of slowdowns and crashes must still be accounted for. For now, all we can do is wait and see how this horrid situation develops.

Gained Heterodoxy, Noocracy, Totality: -10 to all infraverse-related rolls

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 2: Eurasian Boogaloo (2118)

Only a decade out from the last global conflict, and already the next conflagration is upon us. Thankfully, it is mostly contained to a single region, and one where we don't have many assets or constituents. Still, the tragedy of it all is almost indescribable. Vast legions of fascist fanatics are assaulting one another, with anyone innocent caught in the crossfire. What's surprising is how conventional the conflict has been until now. Either the Europeans don't want to destroy their own defense grid, or else the latter is doing its job a little too well. The result is a relatively old-school contest of tanks, mechs, and powered infantry, with swarms of drones making up the aerial front.

So far, the EU is slowly pushing back the cosmist coup forces, although the two bulwarks of Moscow and Stalingrad are still in Eurasian hands. Further east, a more dynamic war is unfolding, with the Council of Russia coming apart at the seams through both external assault and internal subversion. The main question is whether the coup plotters can complete their conquest of Siberia before their main territory falls to the EU. If they can, this promises to be a prolonged conflict at the least, and an epochal cataclysm at worst. To prepare for the latter possibility, UN forces are already being sent to the north of China, both to manage the inflow of Siberian refugees, and to harden our border against an advancing enemy.

Of course, in terms of immediate impact, the worst part for us has been the assault on our infraverse, which is now clogged with all kinds of digital maladies. These cosmists are clearly more capable than your average vampire or iconoclastic terror cell. Even so, it's clear that our comms infrastructure has been underperforming. To remedy this, the Secretariat has decided to incorporate the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) directly into UNIDA. Their main enterprise, Project Tensegrity, is focused on redesigning our network architecture into one which could withstand several regional failures at once, compensating through a more redundant kind of cloud computing. This will take a lot of effort, and we've been asked to lend some UNDP resources if possible. We'll have to see about that; there's a lot that demands UNIDA's attention.

Spoiler: Active Status Effects

Gaze Starhawk: +10 Bonus on actions dealing with Indigenous Issues, +5 Bonus on actions dealing with non-aligned powers, +5 Bonus on actions taking place on US territory
Ainu Basing Rights: +5 to fleet action rolls in the waters around Japan
Japanese Exile Expertise: +5 to any Japan-related rolls
Secret Statistics Department: Lower requirements for simulation infiltration decisions
Heterodoxy, Noocracy, Totality: -10 to all infraverse-related rolls

UNDP: 4 Free Dice

• Free Dice can be used on any project within or outside of the Core Group, but will be discounted in the latter case. This malus can be overcome by having the UNDP permanently adopt the project, but this in turn takes a policy die.

UNEEF: 4 Dice

• Project Cambrian (900-1100)
  • Ocean De-Fertilization Tests (0/200): One of the many failed decarbonization projects of the 21st century concerned the fertilization of the oceans with mass injections of iron, nitrogen, and phosphorus. At the time, it was hoped that the resulting excitement of phytoplankton growth could lead to meaningful amounts of carbon sequestration. In actuality, the algal blooms which resulted only ended up accelerating the deoxygenation of the world's oceans, thus leading to the present preponderance of so-called 'dead zones'. To overcome this inherent eutrophication, a necessary step will thus be to 'de-fertilize' the oceans. This effort must begin with several test programs in coastal waters, where the pollution is most severe.
  • Adaptive Plankton Programs (0/250): The base of the food chain is where our efforts at ocean revivification must inevitably begin. Once we can get the plankton flourishing, the rest of the ecosystem should follow. This set of programs would be specifically aimed at modifying these microorganisms for our present environment, one of relative heat and hypoxia.
• Project Riposte (800-1000)
  • Creative Destruction (0/150): In order to build a counter to any potential climate WMDs, we should know what kind our enemies would be most likely to build. To do so, several avenues of research will be pursued. We will interview some of the barbarous eco-nihilists of the former Brazilian regime, we will look at various climate collapse fantasies among the Escapists, and we will put together a team of creative but morbid minds to brainstorm new ways to wreck the planet.
  • Prevent Proliferation (104/250): In trying to secure the superweapons of yore, your people have discovered a reactionary conspiracy to use these terrible technologies against you. The only thing to do about that is to try and dig them out, root and stem. This will take the additional deployment of DPO security forces, and perhaps a helping hand from UNATCO. But with your powers combined, these living fossils can be made extinct at last.
• Project Lovelock (700-900)
  • Personality Panels (20/100): This Gaia technology must learn to speak for nature, communicate its needs to us. But for it to establish a mode of cooperation with the rest of humanity, it must have a legible personality. This part of the development track will be aimed at setting the parameters for Gaia. What will our Green Goddess be like?
  • Build the Biodomes (0/200): No plan survives contact with the enemy, and no program survives contact with nature. Still, we must have some set of protocols, some model of the basic principles of ecology, if our Gaiic designs are to have any chance of succeeding. This requires a controlled environment, a hermetic locale where the prototype AI can be tested. By building some dedicated biodomes, we can meet this initial condition.

UNHCR: 4 Dice

• New Colossus (800-1000)
  • Simulation Federation Programs (0/200): Aside from their obvious material needs, most Triple-S Realms are socially self-sufficient. That is to say, they function by their own rules and principles, without requiring any cultural feedback from or towards our own reality. While this state of affairs is not inherently defective, our contact with and liberation of the Triple-S Realms within our custody has seen a certain portion of their populace request a greater degree of incorporation with what they now consider to be a truer reality. To accommodate their wishes, we can begin to devolve some of our own necessary functions to them: simulable research projects, low-risk bureaucratic work. At the same time, we will also give them access to our internet, although the interlinking bandwidth will likely be limited at first. In all these ways, our disparate realities can grow ever more united.
  • First Contact Protocols (52/100): There is a remarkable degree of similarity between the process of contacting subsidiary Triple-S realities, and the old sci-fi staple of First Contact with alien life. In both instances, a terrifying existential question (Are we real? Are we alone?) must be broached, causing one's sense of reality to drastically expand. By studying some of the conventions of alien first contact, whether real or fictional, we can refine our protocol for liberating Simulated Realms.
• Road Warrior (600-800)
  • Track the Caravans (42/150): The neo-nomadic communities of foragers and migrants are famously elusive, having arisen in a time where the state's surveillance presented an acute danger to their life and lifeway. To overcome this legacy of distrust, we must allow these communities to register themselves at their own pace, and must promise to track them no more than is necessary. Once they see that this data can be used to their own benefit, a relation of trust can slowly be established.
  • Build the Rest Stops (0/250): The neo-nomads are a hardy people, but they are not invincible. They often suffer casualties when trying to cross the ecological dead zones along their routes, which is an impressive feat in itself. With this in mind, an easy way to build both infrastructure and goodwill would be to establish some well-stocked caravanserai along these dangerous trails. They would do wonders for the general logistical traffic in these areas as well.
• Libertalia (500-800)
  • Location, Location, Location (100/150): The biggest open question when it comes to the establishment of our new Libertalias is their precise location. While we have certainly found some willing candidates, both among the to-be-relocated refugees and their Indigenous hosts, there is still the pressing problem of material capacity. Many Indigenous settlements are located in highly precarious regions, and could not support a large influx of migrants. We will have to thread this needle of hospitality and livability carefully.

DPO: 4 Dice

• Operation Kublai Khan (900-1100)
  • Prepare the Fleet (0/250): A maritime invasion of the Japanese Isles requires a well-prepared invasion force, ready to face whatever blackbox challenges might await us. This all-inclusive preparation won't be remotely easy, but it is the first step to gaining significantly more knowledge and territory for our fledgling UN alliance.
• Operation Augeias (900-1100)
  • Shuttle Reinforcement (130/200): The aftermath of the Fourth World War has produced a severe case of Kessler Syndrome. As long as we lack the necessary infrastructure for a mass cleanup operation, the best we can do is to reinforce our Earth-to-orbit shuttles, both by augmenting the ones we operate directly and by setting the safety standards for those that we don't.
  • Daedalus Industrial Rebuilding (0/300): Daedalus Station is one of the few major orbital installations that are still in UN hands. Since its industrial sector was mostly ruined during the war, we will have to rebuild it if we are to have any chance of expanding our presence in space.
• Operation Van Helsing (600-800)
  • Operation Blood Bank (0/200): Pitched as a classic honeypot maneuver, Operation Blood Bank is aimed at establishing a series of easily hackable power distribution networks, entirely legitimate if not for their nature as vampire bait. When placed around areas of likely vampiric activity, it will only be a matter of time before their automated siphoning algorithms hit upon these irresistible resources, allowing us to trace the hacks back to their source. Easy as pie.
  • Operation Analog (0/200): The easiest way to lure a vampiric enterprise out of hiding is to force them to re-establish their parasitic connections to the wider power network. To do so, we will arrange for a series of rolling blackouts in the most afflicted regions. While we should notify the resident populations about these disruptions, we must refrain from doing so through digital communications; these would likely be tracked by vampiric surveillance bots. Instead, we must resort to old school means: physical notices, public announcements, even telephone calls. While obvious to the physical populace, the online world might not even notice until the moment of disconnection is there. And that's exactly the plan.
• Project Riposte: See above

UNPFII: 2 Dice

• The Dreaming Initiative (800-1000)
  • Dances Without Wolves (132/250): While the rehabilitation of Indigenous simulated souls is a noble endeavor, it is also hampered by a core issue, that being the non-actual identity of the rehabilitated. To put it another way, even the most sophisticated simulation of present or historical Indigenous people is necessarily incomplete, and thus not perfectly representative of the original figure. In the most egregious instances, these individuals are more reminiscent of nasty colonial stereotypes about the brutal or noble 'savage' than anything historically authentic. To overcome this identity crisis, a vast program of cultural re-education must be incorporated into our efforts. Thankfully, while confronting these living stereotypes is somewhat unnerving, the Indigenous communities we're working with have renewed their commitment to this project, eager to impart the reality of their cultures as a kind of grand exorcism.
  • A Rugged Request (0/250): The preliminary supplying of artificial bodies to the Dreaming Initiative has run into a bit of a problem. Since most such bodies are adapted for urban lifestyles, they lack the necessary ruggedization which life in more rural Indigenous communities would require. Meanwhile, the few more hardy models we have on hand are either too rough-hewn to be suitable for permanent inhabitation, or too militarized to be spread among the general population. In all likelihood, a new bespoke model will have to be designed and deployed. The silver lining here is that such a design will likely be useful for other purposes, as well. But it is a lot of work nevertheless.
• The Zomia Program (700-900)
  • There and Back Again (0/250): To Serve the People, one must go to the people. Unfortunately, the regions that are to be served by the Zomia Program are incredibly remote, partly by design. Instead of trying to bring our global team of specialists to them, we have opted for a remote work solution. By instructing these regions to each build an RUF (Robotic Unfolder-Fabricator), they can stockpile the capacity for several cadres to load in at once. This will allow our experts to be anywhere and everywhere, and to scale our involvement as needed. It will take some time to set up, though.
  • Incorporate the Ainu (55/200): The good vibes created through your interaction with Hokkaido's native population has now led to their proposed incorporation into the PFII. While the extent of their claims and duties will have to be ironed out, this is a mutually beneficial proposition at its core. The Ainu will get the protection of our global community, and we will have a steadfast ally in a volatile region. It's win-win!

UNETC: 1 Dice

• Project Penglai (700-1000)
  • Recentralization (35/250): When the Ecological Dead Zones were approaching the point of irreversible extinction, great projects were dreamed up to at least preserve some of its natural treasures. Unfortunately, the general chaos of the last century intervened to make this effort into a more diffuse and haphazard affair, resulting in a few dozen DNA banks and wild parks spread all across the planet. In order to begin the revivification of the areas under our stewardship, we would do well to bring these various remnants back to their source. By building a network of biodomes and research institutes within the relevant territories, our later, more ambitious efforts will go that much smoother.

UN Habitat: 2 Dice

• Libertalia: See above
• Friends of Verdi (400-600)
  • Paint It Green (0/100): One of the most promising initiatives under our auspices is the development of AirSpray, a sprayable paint with a chlorophyll additive. By providing this Green Graffiti to urban artists across the UN, we will have found a cheap way to make our megacities just a little more livable.
  • Mirror, Mirror (0/200): Among the more forgotten causes of urban misery in the UN is the relative lack of daylight at the bottom levels of our megacities. To overcome this inherent problem with hyperdense architecture, we can construct a series of light funnels and well-placed mirrors, thereby lighting up the most gloomy parts of each metropolis. This should also augment overall plant growth, fulfilling a key part of our mandate.

UNOCHA: 1 Dice

• Project Barefoot (400-600)
  • Operation Kurosawa (107/150): Sometimes, all you need to fix a dire situation are a few good men. Since this isn't an age of wandering ronin, our stable of technicians and care workers will have to do. The goal of this initial operation will be to send out a set of internally diverse work teams to the remotest regions of our territory, thus assessing their most dire needs and deploying some immediate aid. Given the dangerous nature of both our peripheral regions and our vast interior, a security escort will likely be necessary.

ILO: 1 Dice

• Project Pannekoek (400-600)
  • Horizontal Seminars (53/100): The tricky part about proper socialist labor practices is that they cannot be taught from above; they must be an expression of proletarian self-activity. As such, it is our job to be mere facilitators for the workers' own learning and self-assertion. By providing the resources and venue space for horizontal, worker-to-worker organizing sessions, we can let this project take care of itself.
  • BAT Signal (0/150): So far, the BAT has been a great way of giving the rank-and-file UN workers some input during the planning stage of our initiatives. Unfortunately, a lot can still go wrong during the actual execution of these plans. While a general appeals process already exists within the ILO Tribunal, we need something broader and more responsive if we are to get a good grasp of how our workforce estimates their own success. Along these lines, we are aiming to install an algedonic module into the UNIDA monitoring apparatus. To put it simply, workers' complaints of overwork and unrealistic targets will come straight to us, instead of being filtered through their managers. That way, we can know when a project might be on the brink of collapse, or conversely, when we are overheating it through our direct support. This should result in a more balanced developmental effort and a healthier work culture.

Policy: 1 Die

• Project Management
  • Add a project: If we feel that a certain part of our mandate is not being met, we can always try to add a project directly to the UNDP. It could either be a bespoke initiative developed in-house, or else one adopted from outside of the Core Group. All of this is entirely within the Vice-Chairman's power, and would allow them to spend some of the UNDP's discretionary resources on a project that would otherwise go neglected.
  • Cancel a project: If a given project is not delivering an adequate amount of progress, or if it is distracting us from more important goals, then it can always be canceled. While this would incur a small short-term political cost, the higher-ups will appreciate our turn to more efficient efforts in the long run.
• Core Group Management
  • Add an organization: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
  • Remove an organization: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
  • Consolidate organizations: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
• UNIDA Management
  • Harden Network Infrastructure (0/100): Those damned Eurasians have turned parts of the infraverse into a brutish, propagandistic place of unsecured connections and intrusive adware. It's like those awful simulations of the 21st century internet. To keep it from dragging down UNIDA productivity, your network engineers are going to have to quarantine your infranet, at least until the wider crisis is sorted out.
  • Reorganize the UNIDA-UNSD relation (0/150): The various components of UNIDA have long worked with the UNSD to exchange necessary statistical information. Many of them are even direct members of the Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities (not to be confused with the UN Statistical Commission, the erstwhile overseer of the UNSD before the abolition of ECOSOC). If UNIDA is to be the UN's centralized developmental organ, then the clarification of all this statistical traffic is indispensable. As a partial solution, UNIDA will fund a specific department of the UNSD, aimed at providing and receiving data focused on its developmental activities. UNIDA will also become a member of the CCSA, supplanting the position of any total subsidiaries like the UNDP.

Politics: 1 Die

• A Message from the General Secretary: A sealed message has arrived to your office, courtesy of the Secretariat. You are said to open it 'only when you can afford it, as the task described herein will take up a significant amount of your time and effort'. Huh. Mysterious!
• Contact Your Counterparts: UNIDA is hardly the only global organization focused on progress and development. Hell, it may not even be the most important one within the UN alliance itself! By liaising with some of your national and international counterparts, such as AmPlan and the NRRC, you can begin to align your goals, share your resources, and promote your general synergy.
• Walk the Halls of Power: The unofficial "UN City" of Monumental Manhattan is an extraordinary hub of political movers and shakers. By taking some time to attend its many galas, mixers, and salons, you'll steadily become acquainted with some of its more important portions. Such contacts could come in handy in some of your more clandestine pursuits, as representatives of all stripes may be found at these fetes. It is even rumored that the GTO maintains some informal connections in this way! Now, doesn't that make you curious?

Spoiler: Non-Core Organizations

UNESCO (2 Dice): Operation Yijing (2 Dice), New Colossus (0 Dice)
UNODOS (2 Dice): Operation Augeias (2 Dice), Project Tarkas (0 Dice)
ISCRA (2 Dice): The Dreaming Initiative (0 Dice), The Hirschfeld Initiative (2 Dice)
UNCXR (1 Die): Project Riposte (1 Die)
UNLIEC (1 Die): The Commensal Program (1 Die)
OHCSSR (1 Die): The Hirschfeld Initiative (1 Die)
IOM (1 Die): New Colossus (1 Die)
ITU (1 Die): Project Tensegrity (1 Die)

Author's Note: As you can see, BAT reporting has allowed you to get a sense of the total input required for each project. Note that this evaluates the entire endeavor, even the parts you may have already completed. Also, a 12 hour voting moratorium is now in effect. Happy planning!

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 2: Eurasian Boogaloo Results

Spoiler: Turn 2 Plan

[X] Plan: Lockdown
-[X] UNEEF (4 dice)
--[X] Project Riposte: Prevent Proliferation (104/250) 4d
-[X] UNCHR (4 dice)
--[X] New Colossus: First Contact Protocols (52/100) 2d
--[X] Road Warrior: Track the Caravans (42/150) 2d
-[X] DPO (4 dice + 1 Free)
--[X] Operation Kublai Khan: Prepare the Fleet (0/250) 5d
-[X] UNPFII (2 dice + 2 Free)
--[X] The Dreaming Initiative: Dances Without Wolves (132/250) 2d
--[X] The Zomia Program: Incorporate the Ainu (55/200) 2d
-[X] UNETC (1 die)
--[X] Project Penglai: Recentralization (35/250) 1d
-[X] UN Habitat (2 dice)
--[X] Libertalia: Location, Location, Location (100/150) 2d
-[X] UNOCHA (1 die)
--[X] Project Barefoot: Operation Kurosawa (107/150) 1d
-[X] ILO (1 die)
--[X] Project Pannekoek: Horizontal Seminars (53/100) 1d
-[X] Policy (1 die + 1 Free)
--[X] UNIDA Management: Harden Network Infrastructure (0/100) 2d
-[X] Politics (1 die)
--[X] Contact Your Counterparts 1d

Spoiler: UNIDA Non-Core Group Report, Summary

UNESCO rebuilt some decaying heritage sites (293/1000), UNODOS revised space shuttle standards (netting you a relevant bonus), ISCRA and the OHCSSR got in a dispute over embodiment priorities (127/1400), UNLIEC put on a primitivist party in Perth (125/600), IOM prioritized simulation federation when you didn't (85/200), and ITU got started on reinforcing the internet's backbone (72/600).

UNEEF

Project Riposte: Prevent Proliferation 104+54+23+25+98+61 (UNCXR)+15 (Starhawk) = (380/250) (Complete) (Minor Casta Crisis)

When it comes to old American reactionaries, there's no such thing as overkill. The wretched remnants of the Second Republic are a continuing source of shame to US officials, and they gladly authorize any necessary action to root these bastards out. Together with UNATCO, which is trained for these kinds of things, you go on to hunt down the missing superweapons. You quickly learn that what you're after is a so-called Iconobomb, a specific kind of micro-unfolder which breaks down any piece of culture (including people) which the user rejects. In short, it's a targeted genocide device, and now it's in the hands of these Amerifascists.

Eventually, through some devoted anti-fascist praxis, you manage to track this cell to the ruins of old Los Angeles. You interrupt them just as they are about to attempt their first test of the device; it only manages to destroy a part of the Hollywood sign before you stop in its tracks. As the DHS diehards are carted off to the interrogation room, though, you hit upon a far wider conspiracy. Apparently this cell was working with others of its kind in PALA, training them through a mysterious "School of the Americas". This hidden university of terror now becomes your next target.

Thanks to their terrible infosec, you soon trace the School of the Americas to Panama City, capital of PALA, where you end up in a shootout with both students and teachers alike. Once most of them are dead or captured, the true scope of this Pan-American terrorist group is revealed. Under the codename of 'Casta', it seeks to turn back the clock about 150 years, to a time when the US would at least guarantee the right racial order through its imperialist Monroe Doctrine.

Upon learning of the total plot, your people shudder at its reactionary nature. When will the sins of the old US be redeemed? Not today, apparently. But maybe tomorrow, as you continue your hunt for the agents of Casta. All Amerifascism shall return to the dustbin of history!

Gained Minor Casta Crisis: -5 to all actions in the Americas until 2120

UNHCR

New Colossus: First Contact Protocols 52+93+93-20 (HNT) = (218/100) (Complete) (118/300 Operation Red Pill)

Defying any Eurasian sabotage, your people plow ahead in their effort to concoct proper methods of First Contact. Unlike the extraterrestrial variant, which is more about establishing communications to begin with, this set of protocols focuses mostly on preventing mass panic under a variety of different circumstances. Naturally, the easiest scenarios are those where the given simulation already has an internal practice of creating virtual environments; you're just turning the proposition on its head there. Paradoxically, it's also easy to contact those realms which have absolutely no conception of simulation, as you can explain the notion in the least distressing way possible. Ultimately, the trickiest worlds will be those where simulation exists as a concept, but has not yet been put into practice. Simulations of the 1950-2050 period in human history are especially troublesome in this regard. Unfortunately, these are also quite popular.

To give your newfangled Virtual Diplomatic Corps some necessary practice, you let them loose on examples of the aforementioned 'easy' environments. So far, this hasn't produced any major crises. Then again, you've only established basic contacts with large local polities. Any public revelation is yet to take place, and that's where the real challenge begins.

Gained Virtual Diplomatic Corps: +5 to Simulation Diplomacy Actions

Road Warrior: Track the Caravans 42+13+75+5 (Starhawk)= 135/150

The laid-back attitude of our Road Warrior agents has somehow resulted in quite a bit of progress. They'd probably argue that's the 'Way of the Road' at work, or whatever vaguely spiritual beliefs they're claiming now. They've honestly turned into veritable neo-hoboes. Still, it's been a good place to stick some of UNIDA's bureaucratic misfits, as the job requires an actual lack of discipline or convention. Pretty soon, these wanderers will have gone everywhere they can reach, and we'll have a lot of new nomadic partners to work with.

DPO

Operation Kublai Khan: Prepare the Fleet 32+88+41+100+27+25 (Exiles)+25 (Ainu Base) = 338/250 (Complete) (Nat 100) (88/250 Launch!)

Something about the sea air makes your naval task force all the more eager to get out there. Their preparation is simply impeccable: not only do they pack enough provisions to supply a whole prefecture, but they even make sure to instruct the crew on local culture and mythology, steeling them against whatever monsters might await. To really give your operation some kick, the council of admirals in charge of the whole affair decides to expedite some of the initial landing operations, specifically the ones which focus on some of the small outlying islands like Okinawa and Tsushima. This part of the mission goes off without a hitch: the landing troops report some strange noises at night, but that's about it. Thanks to this initiative, you now have even more bases to support the main invasion from. This simply can't go wrong now!

Upgraded Ainu Basing Rights to Control of Japanese Waters: +15 to fleet action rolls in the waters around Japan

UNPFII

The Dreaming Initiative: Dances Without Wolves 132+49+28+25 (Starhawk)-20 (HNT) = (214/250)

With every new graduate of your re-education program, you come a little closer to unleashing a new Indigenous Renaissance. This would be, what, the third in a century? You can't get enough of them, honestly. In this case, it's being driven by the need to condense and impart the different cultures of the PFII to their virtual derivatives. In doing so, many come to learn new aspects of the lifeways they were born into. Some of these discoveries even originate in the virtual populace, not all of whom are simple stereotypes. Though a bit of work is yet to be done, your people look forward to the rest of their effort.

The Zomia Program: Incorporate the Ainu 55+35+24+20 (Starhawk) = (134/200)

In its long history, the PFII has rarely had a more pleasant membership application process than the one it is presently organizing with the Ainu. Much of it comes down to the simple willingness–some would say desperation–of the Ainu to acquire a regional ally, especially now that Russia seems poised to collapse. At the same time, though, the absence of any settler-colonial interference also makes it easier to incorporate the Ainu on our end. There is no Japanese authority to dispute the Ainu's claim on Hokkaido; even if the exile community might grouch a little bit, our pre-existing accord with the UNHRC takes care of that. At this rate, the application will probably be completed by next year, setting a new peacetime record for this rather involved procedure.

UNETC

Project Penglai: Recentralization 35+40 = (75/250)

Even the continuing flow of cute animal pictures can't occlude the fact that this project is far behind schedule. While another two Central African biodomes are built, this is just one of the many zones which Project Penglai will have to remediate. It's going to be a long road.

UN Habitat

Libertalia: Location, Location, Location 100+86+2+30 (Starhawk) = (218/150) (Complete) (68/200 First Communes)

Having found the optimal locations by cross-referencing available watersheds with receptive Indigenous communities, you begin the process of establishing the first proper Libertarias. A bit of cultural cooperation with the PFII encourages you towards the creative use of local histories. Before long, this leads to the foundation of settlements like Cahokia, Lakotah, and the New Dismal Swamp. While most of your efforts are yet focused on North America (likely a result of the Vice-Chairperson's influence) you will soon start work on your Chinese and East African initiatives as well. Even if these are your first, somewhat experimental communes, you can already feel them brimming with potential. It's anti-essentialism in action!

Gained one free Dreaming Initiative action on the next turn

UNOCHA

Project Barefoot: Operation Kurosawa 107+36+5 (Starhawk) = 148/150 (Complete enough)

"New from UNESCO! Experience the thrilling adventures of UNOCHA's Barefoot Heroes on the frontier of the Internationale! See how they combat escapist settlers and preventable diseases! But watch out, because the evil Agent Washington is planning to strike!

Complete all basic course materials in the infraverse, and receive printing instructions for all ten hero figures! UNESCO: Where Culture is the Revolution!'

Gained A Variable Number of Samurai: Lower requirements for all peripheral aid projects

ILO

Project Pannekoek: Horizontal Seminars 53+48 = (101/100) (Complete)

At last, the convenient excuse for slacking and shirking has come to an end now. For a few blissful weeks, your managers breathe a little easier. Then, the ruckus starts up again. Having read their Beer and Balina, the UN workforce now begins to assert its independence on the basis of cybernetic principle, demanding more autonomy and less evaluation. They want a greater degree of democracy in higher-level planning, with less of the artificial institutional barriers that can turn departments against one another. Through greater coordination between UNIDA's organs, new kinds of interdisciplinary projects might at last become possible. Of course, this all depends on the intermediate managers giving up some of their own privileges and prerogatives. As these middle layers are increasingly squeezed by pressure from above and below, great change seems to be in the offing.

Gained one free "Consolidate Organizations" action at the next Reflection Point

Policy

UNIDA Management: Harden Network Infrastructure 46+46-20 (HNT) = (72/100)

A selection of direct messages sent on the UNIDA IT infranet:

"Spent the last three days on call with a very persistent middle manager. Took me until this morning to realize it was a Russian bot. I feel like I failed a Turing test there."

"Do you think they'd stand down if we pledged fealty to Eurasia? At this point, I might just do it."

"NOTICE: A Trojan just shut down the lunch room fridge. Either get your stuff out of there, or resort to the printer. Which is still in recovery mode, by the way."

"Hey friends, check out these cool dolphin memes I got from UNETC [image attached]."

"Jean, your meme just hacked my ocular implants. Everyone looks like Tsar Jackson now."

"The trouble with a posthuman metabolism is that you don't get to enjoy your own alcoholism. Let me fuck up my own life, damn it. I would have any drug addiction over this endless slog."

"ALL HAIL EURASIA! Just kidding, get back to work."

Politics

Contact Your Counterparts: 37

Along with your many other responsibilities, you spend some part of this year meeting with the various constituent planning organs of the UN alliance, along with those of some sympathetic neutral powers. In comparing these various meetings, most of which are had around lunch or dinnertime, you get a good picture of the spectrum of diplomatic interactions here in Monumental Manhattan.

For instance, your meeting with the Chinese representative of the NRRC goes swimmingly. You meet at an upscale version of an Emergency Period People's Canteen, making an offering to the martyrs of the revolution before sitting down for dinner. The representative is practical to a fault, laying out their present investment focuses and proposing a simple cooperation agreement. Once you've talked it through, they loosen up a little, and you spend the rest of the dinner having a relatively intimate conversation about your time during the war.

When it comes time to meet the Americans, your experience proves drastically different. For starters, you are obliged to meet several of them at once; the structure of AmPlan is such that all of its member states–those being the US and the national constituents of PALA–are allowed to negotiate with you at once, just as long as they do so collectively. The result is a rowdy exchange near one of Manhattan's famous food gondolas. As all of the delegates talk over each other, you only manage to gather that they want you to build more pan-american infrastructure. At least the food is good.

Finally, you end up meeting with the clandestine ambassador of Greenland in a common New York apartment. As one of the last non-essentialist nations in the Arctic Circle, Greenland is not exactly allowed to run its own independent foreign policy. It still tries to, naturally, leading to this home cooked lunch. While the island at present doesn't have many resources to spare, it would gladly let you utilize its considerable refugee population, just as long as you build them some settlements first. It's a meager deal, but could be the first step to deeper relations.

Which cooperation plan does Starhawk settle on?

[] The National Reconstruction and Reform Commission: Complete an expanded version of Project Barefoot, and you will receive a permanent +5 bonus to any actions in China.

[] The Pan-American Planning Board: Complete an expanded version of the Dreaming Initiative, and AmPlan will join UNIDA as a minor non-core organization.

[] The Greenland Settlement Authority: Complete an expanded version of Libertalia, and you will unlock further cooperation projects with the Consociation of Greenland.

The Chances of Anything Coming From Mars…

For most of the year, the world's attention is naturally on Russia, and the three-sided war raging there. On the western front, the battle between Eurasia and the EU is mostly a slow grind, with the yet ongoing Battle of Voronezh being the supposed lynchpin. If the Eurostate can manage to take this city in the coming year, then the fledgling Eurasian regime could easily be crushed. At the same time though, the cosmists are steadily advancing on the eastern front, taking Irkutsk in October. If the Eurasians can roll up the Russian warlords and make their pivot to the west in time for the next EU offensive, then the long war we've been predicting will at last begin.

By June, though, nobody outside of the region is really thinking about all this, for a dire announcement is received from Mars: the founding of the New Barsoomian Coalition.

Let me wind things back a little. Though only the third most populated extraterrestrial body after Luna and Venus, the planet of Mars has always had a tendency to attract the most eccentric of space colonists. The prospect of settling a barren, poisonous rock attracts few people, and those it does are generally weird. As such, only about a million souls inhabit Mars permanently, though this number goes up dramatically if you count all the simulants and Guest workers. During the darkest days of the climate crisis, tens of millions of people had their minds uploaded and sent to martian databanks, hoping to escape whatever terminal fate awaited Earth. While some got to enjoy the virtual utopias of its ultra-capitalist founders, most were forcibly drone-sleeved and put to work on the megaproject of terraformation. In cities like Elonia and Alexandria Marineris, this Babylonian Stasis is still the order of the day. Here you'll find the kind of dying and decadent society which once made up the popular image of the Red Planet. What sordid irony.

But this is not the whole story of Martian settlement. Over the years, there has been hardly a polity that hasn't committed itself to exploring this planet in some fashion. Naturally, the largest missions and settlements tend to reflect the balance of power on Earth itself, with a few notable exceptions. As noted before, it seems as if each power sent not only their brightest, but their strangest as well. This has led to the adoption of various extremist belief systems among the Martian people. Not all of them are malevolent, but even the ones which align with the Internationale tend to be fanatics.

Now, among the many cults and cultures which call Mars home, there is the popular belief that the planet represents either the past or the future of human civilization. This idea has found various diverging expressions, each more interesting than the last. Among the Followers of Roko, for example, it is supposed that the planet's settlement will give rise to a vast superintelligence; the realization of this inevitable future demands their utmost devotion. Meanwhile, the Lemurian subculture holds that human civilization originated on Mars, with the benevolent aliens who dwelled here transferring their sapience to proto-humans in order to protect themselves from the evil inhabitants of ancient Atlantis. Finally, a more anarchist and animist group of eco-poets simply believes that their efforts at 'areoformation' will awaken the dormant spirits of Mars, thus reviving whatever nature or civilization may have dwelled here before. Taken together, all these differing tendencies are united by their shared belief in the importance of Mars to humanity. This central concept also has a name: the Barsoomian Principle. I think you can see where this is going.

Ever since the end of WW4, the Internationale has only been able to contact a handful of our allies and associates on Mars. It was assumed that the rest of them had either been wiped by the GTO's own forces, or else gone to ground. We now know that the latter option was mostly correct. And in their secret shelters and nomad convoys, mixing with all kinds of different people, a new synthesis was formed. A Barsoomian ideal.

By 2118, the hidden forces of the New Barsoomian Coalition were ready to announce themselves. In their eagerness to prove a point, they quickly broke many of the rules of anti-essentialist care and conduct. Taking advantage of the planet's low population, they used the self-replicating tools at their disposal to start a series of breakneck industrialization and areo-engineering efforts. One of the few rules they didn't break was the one against mistreating simulants. Indeed, they appealed to the virtual Martian masses by offering them a place in their new order. Together, they would create a Mars of both progress and ecology, restored to its ancient glory even as the future offered further advancements. The drone defections came almost instantly.

This brings us to the present day. As it is, most major Martian cities have been either occupied by the NBC, or are presently under siege by them. Meanwhile, our industrial analysts estimate that at the exponential rate at which their Macro-Folders are operating, the Barsoomians will be able to overtake us in terms of space-deployable industrial capacity within ten years, or even just eight if they manage to capture the space elevator at Tharsis. In other words, within less than a decade, all of our extraterrestrial bases could belong to them.

Naturally, the UN Security Council is feeling somewhat anxious about this rapidly rising power. While some of their internal factions derive from the UN camp, others have expressed their sympathy towards the Sublime State of Eurasia, a gesture that has been returned. We should consider ourselves lucky that they are no friends of the GTO, given their present enemies. Still, once this immediate opponent is removed, the NBC might entirely shift their relation to the Essentialists; they certainly have some proto-essentialist tendencies themselves.

Long story short, this is an extremely volatile and uncertain situation, and we are not at all sure what to do about it. But whatever we choose to do, we must complete Project Tarkas ASAP. Only by liaising with our few remaining allies on the Red Planet can we begin to develop a greater strategy towards the Barsoomians. As for how this project acceleration is to be achieved, this we have yet to decide. Given the current political balance, any of the following three plans seem viable:

[] Transfer Capacity: We can trust UNODOS to take care of this. It simply needs some emergency capacity, which we can offer through the UNDP's bureaucratic reserves. While this crash addition of organizational variety will likely lead to some initial inefficiencies, it is far superior to doing nothing. [UNODOS gains one Non-Core die, but rolls with a -10 malus until Project Tarkas is completed]

[] Reprioritize the Core Group: The best way to control the present crisis is to bring UNODOS itself into the Core Group. This will allow us to lend it the benefits of centralization. Unfortunately, given the inherent limits on our organizational capacity, another organization will have to make space for it. [Swap out a mid-sized organization for UNODOS, giving the latter a +5 bonus to its rolls on Project Tarkas (on top of its automatic transition to rolling d100s instead of d90s)]

[] Militarize Project Tarkas: We should never have entrusted our Martian assets to UNODOS. The present situation calls for a military approach; by transferring Project Tarkas to the DPO wholesale, they'll be able to bring their force to bear on these essentialist upstarts. [Project Tarkas is transferred to the DPO, who rolls with a +10 on it until the crisis is resolved]

So, which of these shall it be?

Spoiler: Author's Notes

I can't believe y'all rolled another major crisis on the second turn, and in my 'wildcard' category too! Had to scramble to come up with something that didn't immediately involve the major factions. Anyway, I hope this results post is to your satisfaction, since these take a lot of time to compile. If there are any obvious errors, please let me know. Also, voting for the two choices is open now.

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 3: A New Third Way? (2119)

The past two years have seen a succession of major political crises, tearing entire regions if not planets apart through sectarian and insurgent violence. What's most disturbing is the way these events have breathed new life into the ideology of Essentialism, going so far as to synthesize it with elements of our own political coalition. This incoherent cocktail is quite reminiscent of the early days of fascism, when many former socialists were led astray by the false allure of futurism, nationalism, and collectivism. At present, both the Sublime State of Eurasia and the New Barsoomian Coalition stand ready to repeat this maneuver.

Given the mutual sympathy the NBC and SSE have expressed towards one another, our worst case scenario would be the formation of a third major power bloc between them. While the threat of the GTO remains, and still dwarfs that of any other potential alliance, its short-term potential for menace is relatively limited. By contrast, the universal-expansionist dreams of the Eurasians and Barsoomians are poised to upset the total balance of power. This must be prevented at all costs.

In trying to combat this potential Third Way, two strategies have prevailed. The first is to pray that the EU takes Moscow before the Eurasians take Vladivostok. While this is still a terrible outcome, at least we know how to deal with the Europeans. The second strategy will be to influence the Barsoomians in a leftward direction. We already know some of our former comrades to be part of their Coalition, and their doctrine is not too offensive altogether on the face of it. If it is possible to create a socialism with Barsoomian characteristics, then we should do our utmost to effect it.

Spoiler: Active Status Effects

Gaze Starhawk: +10 Bonus on rolls dealing with Indigenous Issues, +5 Bonus on rolls dealing with non-aligned powers, +5 Bonus on rolls taking place on US territory
Control of Japanese Waters: +15 to fleet action rolls in the waters around Japan
Japanese Exile Expertise: +5 to any Japan-related rolls
Secret Statistics Department: Lower requirements for simulation infiltration decisions
Virtual Diplomatic Corps: +5 to Simulation Diplomacy Actions
A Variable Number of Samurai: Lower requirements for all peripheral aid projects
Reinforced shuttles: The lowest space action die is automatically rerolled
Mars or bust: +5 to Project Tarkas rolls
Heterodoxy, Noocracy, Totality: -10 to all infraverse-related rolls
Minor Casta Crisis: -5 to all actions in the Americas until 2120

UNDP: 4 Free Dice

• Free Dice can be used on any project within or outside of the Core Group, but will be discounted in the latter case. This malus can be overcome by having the UNDP permanently adopt the project, but this in turn takes a policy die.

UNEEF: 4 Dice

• Project Cambrian (0/900-1100)
  • Ocean De-Fertilization Tests (0/200): One of the many failed decarbonization projects of the 21st century concerned the fertilization of the oceans with mass injections of iron, nitrogen, and phosphorus. At the time, it was hoped that the resulting excitement of phytoplankton growth could lead to meaningful amounts of carbon sequestration. In actuality, the algal blooms which resulted only ended up accelerating the deoxygenation of the world's oceans, thus leading to the present preponderance of so-called 'dead zones'. To overcome this inherent eutrophication, a necessary step will thus be to 'de-fertilize' the oceans. This effort must begin with several test programs in coastal waters, where the pollution is most severe.
  • Adaptive Plankton Programs (0/250): The base of the food chain is where our efforts at ocean revivification must inevitably begin. Once we can get the plankton flourishing, the rest of the ecosystem should follow. This set of programs would be specifically aimed at modifying these microorganisms for our present environment, one of relative heat and hypoxia.
• Project Riposte (450/800-1000)
  • Creative Destruction (0/150): In order to build a counter to any potential climate WMDs, we should know what kind our enemies would be most likely to build. To do so, several avenues of research will be pursued. We will interview some of the barbarous eco-nihilists of the former Brazilian regime, we will look at various climate collapse fantasies among the Escapists, and we will put together a team of creative but morbid minds to brainstorm new ways to wreck the planet.
  • Consolidate Our Acquisitions (0/150): Our fight against Casta has netted us a whole bunch of extremely dangerous weapon prototypes. While most of them are safe with UNCXR, we would still like to see them thoroughly analyzed, collecting the more ecologically oriented ones to make them the basis for our countermeasures. After that, the real development work can begin.
• Project Lovelock (100/700-900)
  • Personality Panels (20/100): This Gaia technology must learn to speak for nature, communicate its needs to us. But for it to establish a mode of cooperation with the rest of humanity, it must have a legible personality. This part of the development track will be aimed at setting the parameters for Gaia. What will our Green Goddess be like?
  • Build the Biodomes (0/200): No plan survives contact with the enemy, and no program survives contact with nature. Still, we must have some set of protocols, some model of the basic principles of ecology, if our Gaiic designs are to have any chance of succeeding. This requires a controlled environment, a hermetic locale where the prototype AI can be tested. By building some dedicated biodomes, we can meet this initial condition.

UNHCR: 4 Dice

• New Colossus (300/800-1000)
  • Simulation Federation Programs (85/200): Aside from their obvious material needs, most Triple-S Realms are socially self-sufficient. That is to say, they function by their own rules and principles, without requiring any cultural feedback from or towards our own reality. While this state of affairs is not inherently defective, our contact with and liberation of the Triple-S Realms within our custody has seen a certain portion of their populace request a greater degree of incorporation with what they now consider to be a truer reality. To accommodate their wishes, we can begin to devolve some of our own necessary functions to them: simulable research projects, low-risk bureaucratic work. At the same time, we will also give them access to our internet, although the interlinking bandwidth will likely be limited at first. In all these ways, our disparate realities can grow ever more united.
  • Operation Red Pill (118/300): The protocols have been codified, and our diplomats stand ready: first contact can officially begin! This initial operation will focus on the low-hanging fruit among our stable of simulations, worlds where our presence is thought to be welcome or expected. While the potential for mass panic will never entirely vanish, even this should be manageable if we stick to our scripts. Or so we hope.
• Road Warrior (0/600-800)
  • Track the Caravans (135/150): The neo-nomadic communities of foragers and migrants are famously elusive, having arisen in a time where the state's surveillance presented an acute danger to their life and lifeway. To overcome this legacy of distrust, we must allow these communities to register themselves at their own pace, and must promise to track them no more than is necessary. Once they see that this data can be used to their own benefit, a relation of trust can slowly be established.
  • Build the Rest Stops (0/250): The neo-nomads are a hardy people, but they are not invincible. They often suffer casualties when trying to cross the ecological dead zones along their routes, which is an impressive feat in itself. With this in mind, an easy way to build both infrastructure and goodwill would be to establish some well-stocked caravanserai along these dangerous trails. They would do wonders for the general logistical traffic in these areas as well.
• Libertalia (150/500-800)
  • First Communes (68/200): Now that we have found some suitable sites for harmonious habitation, it is time to begin the steady work of building and populating. These first dozen sites, placed all over the world, will be the most experimental in nature. Their arrangement will vary widely, switching between a few different designs to see which one these communities like most. In terms of organization, we will seek to answer basic questions about the admixture of component communities, the precise procedures of self-government, and the way that work and wealth should be divided.

DPO: 4 Dice

• Operation Kublai Khan (500/900-1100)
  • Launch! (88/250): We have prepared long enough; now is the time to begin our invasion of the Japanese Islands. Our initial operation shall confine itself to the isle of Kyushu. While relatively small, its environment will likely represent that of the larger archipelago. If our landing forces prove capable of meeting its unknown challenges, then taking the rest of Japan will be a mere matter of time.
• Operation Augeias (200/900-1100)
  • Garbage Downmass Protocols (0/150): Our reinforced shuttles are slowly resuming their supply runs to our orbital habitats. Since the war, these have built up a considerable supply of trash, to say nothing of the space junk which floats nearby. If we are to begin our Kessler cleanup anywhere, it should be here, where our people are most vulnerable. As such, we can order our shuttles to take some of it with them when going back down the gravity well. They can take it all the way, or dump it during their descent; either way, our comrades in space will be rid of it.
  • Daedalus Industrial Rebuilding (0/300): Daedalus Station is one of the few major orbital installations that are still in UN hands. Since its industrial sector was mostly ruined during the war, we will have to rebuild it if we are to have any chance of expanding our presence in space.
• Operation Van Helsing (0/600-800)
  • Operation Blood Bank (0/200): Pitched as a classic honeypot maneuver, Operation Blood Bank is aimed at establishing a series of easily hackable power distribution networks, entirely legitimate if not for their nature as vampire bait. When placed around areas of likely vampiric activity, it will only be a matter of time before their automated siphoning algorithms hit upon these irresistible resources, allowing us to trace the hacks back to their source. Easy as pie.
  • Operation Analog (0/200): The easiest way to lure a vampiric enterprise out of hiding is to force them to re-establish their parasitic connections to the wider power network. To do so, we will arrange for a series of rolling blackouts in the most afflicted regions. While we should notify the resident populations about these disruptions, we must refrain from doing so through digital communications; these would likely be tracked by vampiric surveillance bots. Instead, we must resort to old school means: physical notices, public announcements, even telephone calls. While obvious to the physical populace, the online world might not even notice until the moment of disconnection is there. And that's exactly the plan.
• Project Riposte: See above

UNPFII: 2 Dice

• The Dreaming Initiative (0/1200) (Free Die this turn) (AmPlan Project)
  • Dances Without Wolves (214/250): While the rehabilitation of Indigenous simulated souls is a noble endeavor, it is also hampered by a core issue, that being the non-actual identity of the rehabilitated. To put it another way, even the most sophisticated simulation of present or historical Indigenous people is necessarily incomplete, and thus not perfectly representative of the original figure. In the most egregious instances, these individuals are more reminiscent of nasty colonial stereotypes about the brutal or noble 'savage' than anything historically authentic. To overcome this identity crisis, a vast program of cultural re-education must be incorporated into our efforts. Thankfully, while confronting these living stereotypes is somewhat unnerving, the Indigenous communities we're working with have renewed their commitment to this project, eager to impart the reality of their cultures as a kind of grand exorcism.
  • A Rugged Request (0/250): The preliminary supplying of artificial bodies to the Dreaming Initiative has run into a bit of a problem. Since most such bodies are adapted for urban lifestyles, they lack the necessary ruggedization which life in more rural Indigenous communities would require. Meanwhile, the few more hardy models we have on hand are either too rough-hewn to be suitable for permanent inhabitation, or too militarized to be spread among the general population. In all likelihood, a new bespoke model will have to be designed and deployed. The silver lining here is that such a design will likely be useful for other purposes, as well. But it is a lot of work nevertheless.
• The Zomia Program (0/700-900)
  • There and Back Again (0/250): To Serve the People, one must go to the people. Unfortunately, the regions that are to be served by the Zomia Program are incredibly remote, partly by design. Instead of trying to bring our global team of specialists to them, we have opted for a remote work solution. By instructing these regions to each build an RUF (Robotic Unfolder-Fabricator), they can stockpile the capacity for several cadres to load in at once. This will allow our experts to be anywhere and everywhere, and to scale our involvement as needed. It will take some time to set up, though.
  • Incorporate the Ainu (134/200): The good vibes created through your interaction with Hokkaido's native population has now led to their proposed incorporation into the PFII. While the extent of their claims and duties will have to be ironed out, this is a mutually beneficial proposition at its core. The Ainu will get the protection of our global community, and we will have a steadfast ally in a volatile region. It's win-win!

UNETC: 1 Dice

• Project Penglai (0/700-1000)
  • Recentralization (75/250): When the Ecological Dead Zones were approaching the point of irreversible extinction, great projects were dreamed up to at least preserve some of its natural treasures. Unfortunately, the general chaos of the last century intervened to make this effort into a more diffuse and haphazard affair, resulting in a few dozen DNA banks and wild parks spread all across the planet. In order to begin the revivification of the areas under our stewardship, we would do well to bring these various remnants back to their source. By building a network of biodomes and research institutes within the relevant territories, our later, more ambitious efforts will go that much smoother.

UNODOS: 2 Dice

• Operation Augeias: See above
• Project Tarkas (0/500)
  • Restart the Aldrin Cyclers (0/200): Before the war, we used to have a set of large mobile habitats making constant trips between Earth and Mars. Passenger and cargo shuttles could simply drop off their load, and the cyclers would ferry it across the long dark. It was an efficient system, and one we should reestablish if we want to have any permanent traffic going to and from the red planet.
  • Emergency Convoys (0/100): Among the few UN-aligned communities which still dwell on Mars, there is a dire need for certain resources. This is because, while our molecular printers are ingenious, they are far from being magic. Some compounds are too difficult to print, some constructs are too large to easily assemble, and sometimes the feedstock just isn't available. To remedy most of these issues, a few convoys of emergency supplies should do the trick. So get them going!

UNOCHA: 1 Dice

• Project Barefoot (150/400-600)
  • Thunderbirds are go! (0/250): While our numerous bands of misfits have done a lot of good out in the sticks, there were many instances where their help proved insufficient. To overcome this lack of quick-response assistance, we can set up an auxiliary service of emergency caravans. These would be called on when needed, crossing vast distances to aid whatever particular cadre is running out of tools, resources, or expertise. The folks at UNOCHA HQ have taken a liking to the idea, and have even dug up an old sci-fi franchise to name this service after. Curious.

ILO: 1 Dice

• Project Pannekoek (100/400-600)
  • Internal Exchange Programs (0/150): Our workforce is eager to break down the managerial barriers of our projects and agencies. As it is, they sometimes encounter other cadres in the field while being entirely surprised to find them there. This sort of ignorance and inefficiency should simply be eliminated. As an initial step to more internal cooperation, we should send elements of one agency to apprentice with another, and vice-versa. In this way, they can learn from each other's methods, and build the informal connections we'll need if any official mergers are to be realized.
  • BAT Signal (0/150): So far, the BAT has been a great way of giving the rank-and-file UN workers some input during the planning stage of our initiatives. Unfortunately, a lot can still go wrong during the actual execution of these plans. While a general appeals process already exists within the ILO Tribunal, we need something broader and more responsive if we are to get a good grasp of how our workforce estimates their own success. Along these lines, we are aiming to install an algedonic module into the UNIDA monitoring apparatus. To put it simply, workers' complaints of overwork and unrealistic targets will come straight to us, instead of being filtered through their managers. That way, we can know when a project might be on the brink of collapse, or conversely, when we are overheating it through our direct support. This should result in a more balanced developmental effort and a healthier work culture.

Policy: 1 Die

• Project Management
  • Add a project: If we feel that a certain part of our mandate is not being met, we can always try to add a project directly to the UNDP. It could either be a bespoke initiative developed in-house, or else one adopted from outside of the Core Group. All of this is entirely within the Vice-Chairman's power, and would allow them to spend some of the UNDP's discretionary resources on a project that would otherwise go neglected.
  • Cancel a project: If a given project is not delivering an adequate amount of progress, or if it is distracting us from more important goals, then it can always be canceled. While this would incur a small short-term political cost, the higher-ups will appreciate our turn to more efficient efforts in the long run.
• Core Group Management
  • Add an organization: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
  • Remove an organization: Unavailable until the next Reflection Point
  • Consolidate organizations: One Free Action at next Reflection Point
• UNIDA Management
  • Harden Network Infrastructure (72/100): Those damned Eurasians have turned parts of the infraverse into a brutish, propagandistic place of unsecured connections and intrusive adware. It's like those awful simulations of the 21st century internet. To keep it from dragging down UNIDA productivity, your network engineers are going to have to quarantine your infranet, at least until the wider crisis is sorted out.
  • Reorganize the UNIDA-UNSD relation (0/150): The various components of UNIDA have long worked with the UNSD to exchange necessary statistical information. Many of them are even direct members of the Committee for the Coordination of Statistical Activities (not to be confused with the UN Statistical Commission, the erstwhile overseer of the UNSD before the abolition of ECOSOC). If UNIDA is to be the UN's centralized developmental organ, then the clarification of all this statistical traffic is indispensable. As a partial solution, UNIDA will fund a specific department of the UNSD, aimed at providing and receiving data focused on its developmental activities. UNIDA will also become a member of the CCSA, supplanting the position of any total subsidiaries like the UNDP.

Politics: 1 Die

• A Message from the General Secretary: A sealed message has arrived to your office, courtesy of the Secretariat. You are said to open it 'only when you can afford it, as the task described herein will take up a significant amount of your time and effort'. Huh. Mysterious!
• A Barsoomian Gift Basket: The best way to welcome a new neighbor is by offering a gift. Thus, if our neighbor planet is to become a sovereign power, then we best ingratiate ourselves to them now. Our metaphorical basket of gifts shall be chosen most deliberately, consisting of a set of novel technologies that might steer their incipient development onto a more fruitful path. In other words, we're going to try to manipulate their plans through our soft power, emphasizing the ecological and egalitarian side of their aspirations so as to boost those parts of their Coalition in turn. Most devious, wouldn't you say?
• Prepare the Borderlands: Those wretched Eurasians are getting ever closer to conquering all of Russia. If they do, our alliance will share a border with them in Manchuria (as well as a tiny sliver of Korea). And that is if they don't grab the dead zones of Mongolia and Xinjiang too. To prepare ourselves for this ever more dangerous situation, we should focus some of our efforts on this exact region, establishing enough infrastructure and services for them to weather some kind of border crisis. Given what projects we have going on, we won't be able to do that much; nevertheless, it's better than doing nothing at all.
• Walk the Halls of Power: The unofficial "UN City" of Monumental Manhattan is an extraordinary hub of political movers and shakers. By taking some time to attend its many galas, mixers, and salons, you'll steadily become acquainted with some of its more important portions. Such contacts could come in handy in some of your more clandestine pursuits, as representatives of all stripes may be found at these fetes. It is even rumored that the GTO maintains some informal connections in this way! Now, doesn't that make you curious?

Spoiler: Non-Core Organizations

UNESCO (2 Dice): Operation Yijing (1 Die), New Colossus (1 Die)
UN Habitat (2 Dice): Libertalia (1 Die), Friends of Verdi (1 Die)
ISCRA (2 Dice): The Dreaming Initiative (0 Dice), The Hirschfeld Initiative (2 Dice)
UNCXR (1 Die): Project Riposte (1 Die)
UNLIEC (1 Die): The Commensal Program (1 Die)
OHCSSR (1 Die): The Hirschfeld Initiative (1 Die)
IOM (1 Die): New Colossus (1 Die)
ITU (1 Die): Project Tensegrity (1 Die)

Author's Note: As usual, a twelve-hour voting moratorium applies. You better not roll another crisis this turn!

 

[TheInnerMoon]

Turn 3: A New Third Way? Results

Spoiler: Turn 3 Plan

[] Plan: For Barsoom!
-[] UNEEF (4 dice)
--[] Project Riposte: Consolidate Our Acquisitions (0/150) 4d
-[] UNCHR (4 dice)
--[] New Colossus: Simulation Federation Programs (85/200) 1d
--[] Road Warrior: Track the Caravans (135/150) 1d
--[] Libertalia: First Communes (68/200) 2d
-[] DPO (4 dice)
--[] Operation Kublai Khan: Launch! (88/250) 4d
-[] UNPFII (2 dice + 1 No Cost)
--[] The Dreaming Initiative: Dances Without Wolves (214/250) 1d
--[] The Zomia Program: Incorporate the Ainu (134/200) 2d
-[] UNETC (1 die)
--[] Project Penglai: Recentralization (75/250) 1d
-[] UNODOS (2 dice + 4 Free)
--[] Project Augeias: Garbage Downmass Protocol (0/150) 4d
--[] Project Tarkas: Emergency Convoys (0/100) 2d
-[] UNOCHA (1 die)
--[] Project Barefoot: Thunderbirds are go! (0/250) 1d
-[] ILO (1 die)
--[] Project Pannekoek: BAT Signal (0/150) 1d
-[] Policy (1 die)
--[] UNIDA Management: Harden Network Infrastructure (72/100) 1d
-[] Politics (1 die)
--[] A Barsoomian Gift Basket 1d

Spoiler: UNIDA Non-Core Group Report, Summary

UNESCO is desperately defending its heritage sites (318/1000), UN Habitat is sponsoring guerrilla artists (86/100), ISCRA and the OHCSSR have sorted out their embodiment priorities, and are designing the first general civilian prototypes (267/1400), UNCXR has a room of war criminals brainstorming new WMDs (82/150), UNLIEC is seeing some escapist communities defect to the Negation (140/600), and ITU is just a little closer to bulwarking our network against all these infections (133/600).

UNEEF

Project Riposte: Consolidate Our Acquisitions 83+7+41+82= 213/150 (Completed) (63/150 Monitoring Office)

When it comes to weapons of mass destruction, the Internationale does not fuck around. Project Riposte has been a perfect example of that, as time and again your people have kept these nasty devices out of the hands of insurgent reactionaries. Now, though, you have to confront those factions which already possess such arms, and work to mitigate their potential ecological impact.

UNEEF begins by cataloging all the prototypes you've gathered in the course of this project. The ones that are merely destructive are transferred to UNCXR, as you are only interested in those which could damage the ecosphere at large. With most WMDs, this comes as a side effect; you have enough case studies on nuclear winter to attest to that. With this new class of weapons, though, the ecological damage seems to be precisely the point. You've already been acquainted with the defoliant-producing slime molds which Casta sought to deploy, but these are only the beginning. In this category, one also finds such diverse devices as aerosol-producing drone swarms (variated for either heating or cooling), space-based mirror constellations, and rapid ocean deoxidizers. At least these last ones might be of some use to Project Cambrian, if only to show them what not to do.

Overall, the fact that so many of these weapons started as benevolent geoengineering initiatives unnerves your people to no end. How many more of these have been redeveloped towards destructive ends while you weren't looking?

+50 to Project Cambrian: Ocean Defertilization Tests

UNHCR

New Colossus: Simulation Federation Programs 85+27+54 (UNESCO)+63 (IOM)-30 (HNT)+15 (Diplomacy Bonus)= 214/200 (Completed) (132/300 Operation Red Pill)

Contrary to what one might expect, simulations are never just a free supply of labor. For starters, there is always the question of context shift to content with. Often it's far more trouble re-educating a simulated soul about the reality they'll be working in than simply recruiting local personnel. Secondly, any material work requires a drone or sleeve to operate through. The logistics of this are often more of a bottleneck than the surplus of simulated labor would suggest. Finally, simulated souls are singularly unequipped for any managerial labor. Besides the previous reasons, the inherent distance between them and their subordinate workforce causes an inevitable degree of disconnect. Worker autonomy is almost always the superior option.

With all this in mind, your Simulation Federation Programs' greatest struggle is to find any work that could potentially be outsourced to the simulated. In the end, this mostly comes down to bureaucratic-organizational labor and remote service tasks. The resulting emergence of simulated office towers and call centers is not exactly something to be proud of. Still, those who participate in these programs are just happy to contribute, and only need to commit themselves to this slog for a few hours a week. For despite everything, it's still a massive surplus.

Gained Simulation Support: +10 to any Simulable Service Labor (SSL)


Road Warrior: Track the Caravans 135+43= 178/150 (Completed) (28/200 Aid the Caravans)

Here are some of the coolest Caravans I saw during my time on Road Warrior:

• A school of biomimetic submarines, packed to the gills with algae farms
• A fusion-powered plane which stays permanently aloft, and is constantly swarmed by delivery drones
• A giant catamaran, which can become a hydroplane at high speeds
• A fleet of sail-powered house buggies, cruising down the windy coasts
• Tri-hulled vacuum airships, based on a Venusian prototype design
• Some cars which ran on gasoline? Not sure where they got their fuel from
• An old-school group of horse riders. Their tents were surprisingly spacious!

Gained Migrant Labor: One d20 bonus to a single construction project each turn


Libertalia: First Communes 68+20+35+24 (UN Hab)+20 (Starhawk)= 167/200

Excerpts from "Critical Architecture: A Guide For Utopians"

"During our work on Libertalia, we often found ourselves contending with the paradox of novelty. For as much as we were trying to question the pre-existing paradigms of rural and suburban architecture, our way of doing so still fundamentally depended on the work of those before us. Our innovations would thus derive from their combination and rearrangement, instead of some magical leap into the unknown."

"One class of inspirations could properly be called 'utopian', both in a literal and a historical sense. We looked at such sources as Fourier's old Phalansteries, the rustic science fictions of Morris and Le Guin, and more practical designs like Bolo'bolo and Commune Excessive."

"A particular problem which arose out of our cooperation with the PFII was the question of Indigeneity itself. With all the minds that were being rehabilitated then, there was a renewed emphasis on authenticity and 'traditional' designs. It took some real soul-searching for us to realize that this could easily veer into essentialism. If we were not going to allow for anything new, anything mixed, what was the point of reviving our ancestors?"

"While I remember my time on the project fondly, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention its ghastly interruption by the Negation Plague…"

DPO

Operation Kublai Khan: Launch! 88+14+18+85+96+80 (Japan Bonuses)= 381/250 (Completed) (Overflow consumed by crisis)

Excerpt from "Out of the Frying Pan: A History of the Early 22nd Century":

"Though the combined task force of Operation Kublai Khan would not know it at the time, their actions would set off the most significant crisis on UN territory since the Fourth World War…" (continued below)

UNPFII

The Dreaming Initiative: Dances Without Wolves 214+9+10 (Starhawk)-10 (HNT)= 223/250

The useful cross-pollination between this project and the Libertalia had now turned into a downside, as some of the resources that would ordinarily be reserved for this effort has gone to more immediate work on our experimental communities. The PFII has also had to attend to the incorporation of its newest Ainu members, which only distracted them further. The fact that you were almost done makes the delays even more frustrating. It is dearly hoped that the present crisis won't hamper the initiative further. It probably will though.


The Zomia Program: Incorporate the Ainu 134+75+70+20 (Starhawk)= 299/200 (Completed) (Overflow consumed by crisis)

Your incorporation of the Ainu completes just in time, as any efforts in the region are quickly overwhelmed by the developing crisis. The final signing of the Ainu's accession to the PFII is thus a bit of a calm before the storm, though you do not know it at the time. Instead, all the various diplomatis involved congratulate themselves on a job well done. And to be fair, it was a very smooth process. The goodwill this has fostered has made the Ainu into one of the most supportive elements within the PFII, if not the UN developmental effort at large. This is sure to bear fruit in the future.

Gained Ainu Auxiliaries: +5 to any PFII die

UNETC

Project Penglai: Recentralization 75+17= 92/250

By now, this project is so far behind schedule that your people are starting to quit in droves. They were sold on a globetrotting conservationist adventure, and this is anything but that. Maybe some of them will come back when the project takes a turn for the better, but for now it's a major setback.

UNODOS

Project Augeias: Garbage Downmass Protocol 38+94 (35 rerolled)+87+43= 262/150 (Completed) (112/300 Daedalus Industrial Rebuilding)

"New from UNESCO: Kessler 2120! This new update to our long-running space development MMO brings a full reset to the status quo, inspired by the latest UNOOSA statistics and UNODOS protocols! As always, you will be able to spec into different classes as you work to bring the light of our revolution to the stars. Will you be a humble Trash Trawler, recycling the remnants of humanity's hubris for the sake of a prosperous future? Or will you be a Party Planner, imbuing the UN's development goals with some necessary ideological rigor? This update also introduces the new 'Void Vagrant' class: hitchhike across cislunar space as you share your inspiring songs and stories! UNESCO: Where Culture is the Revolution!"

Gained one free Project Augeias action next turn


Project Tarkas: Emergency Convoys (0/100) 2d 68+52+10 (MoB!)= 130/100 (Completed) (Overflow redirected to Gift Basket)

Of the million souls which permanently dwell on Mars, perhaps a tenth are aligned with the UN. The rest are either GTO lackeys, Barsoomian rebels, or some flavor of neutral. Still, despite this sparse population, the war caused significant hardship, resulting in all kinds of deaths, disappearances, and defections. To make up for the way you've neglected this issue in the past few years, you've now sent a fleet of emergency supply vessels. While some of the aid consists of finished goods, much more of it is logistical in nature. Certain varieties of feedstock are simply unavailable on Mars, and you can't do much greening without the necessary seed banks. Though all this aid has yet to make its full impact known, the immediate response has been one of relief and begrudging gratitude. Couldn't you have done this a little sooner?

Mars or Bust! upgraded to a +10 bonus

UNOCHA

Project Barefoot: Thunderbirds are go! 3/250

[INCIPIENT ASSETS OVERWHELMED BY ACUTE EMERGENCY]

ILO

Project Pannekoek: BAT Signal 30/150

A mediocre amount of progress is made on getting Bat reports straight to the center. Much of this comes down to the problem of information overload; if we try to keep track of every little workplace issue, there won't be any time to do something about them. As the ILO works to install several necessary information filters and collaters, a test run in late October is quickly overrun by the chaos of the Negation Crisis. Given the size of this all-encompassing disruption, it may be a while before your attention can return to these comparatively minor efficiency issues.

Policy

UNIDA Management: Harden Network Infrastructure 72+10-10 (HNT)=72

[OBVIATED BY RECENT EVENTS]

Politics

A Barsoomian Gift Basket 50+15 (Emergency Convoys)=65

Upon taking delivery of your tasteful arrangement of social and ecological technologies, the Barsoomian diplomats are cordial but cool. Your gift will be evaluated, they say, but you are thanked nevertheless. For a while, you assume that this will be the end of it, that your efforts will have a minor positive effect at best. Then, your emergency convoys arrive on the Red Planet, carrying among their load some samples of the donated technologies. Once these are handed out in addition, the Barsoomian reaction proves more positive. You suppose this is because you have saved them the trouble of having to print and assemble these machines, which would take up precious technical capacity. Now they can put these implements to work at once! Suddenly, there are talks of deeper cooperation, of founding a joint ecological project perhaps. You remind yourself to commend whoever thought to pack these additional gifts.

Upon completing project Tarkas, barring any hostility, a joint project with the NBC will open up.

Night of the Living Dead

When your first few scouting parties land on the shores of Japan, their impression is one of sheer desolation. The local harbor infrastructure appears to have gone disused for at least three decades; when the scouts move further inland, it's clear that the same is true for the various villages and cities of Kyushu. In those places where the ground hasn't been permanently contaminated, wild growths of plant and fungal matter cover every available surface. The strange nature of this greenery belies their artificial origin; some kind of biodome leak is suspected.

As the main landing force sets up their first base camps, your vanguard enters the city of Fukuoka. Here, for the first time, they notice a hint of continuing civilization. More specifically, the technopathic among them start to sense the subtle presence of a signal field, emanating from somewhere underground. As the attached engineer force begins to dig, they quickly discover a vast rhizomatic network of nodes and lines running across the city, processing a vast amount of encrypted data. This discovery becomes all the more distressing when those at base camp are asked to perform a dig as well, and there hit upon a similar network. As far as your people can tell, the whole island must be covered in it.

While encrypted, it doesn't take long before your sleuths manage to hack into the signal; they are the best of the best, after all. What it turns out to be is an infraverse hookup, straddling the difference between augmented and virtual reality. Upon connecting to it, the entire landscape instantly changes, being filled with a kaleidoscope of overlapping images. To even begin to summarize it is nigh-on impossible. Nevertheless, what it appears to be is an amalgam of All Japan, or at least Japan as it would like to be remembered. Samurai rub shoulders with long-dead LDP politicians, as Shinto temples sit atop Keiretsu skyscrapers. In its gestalt structure, it is the virtual realization of someone's image of perfection.

Walking around this layer of additional reality, your technopaths are unable to interact with any aspect of it. It seems that a vital part of your interconnection is yet lacking. Perhaps this is for the best, though. The more time you spend in this strange simulation, the more obvious it becomes that this place is eminently Essentialist. The way you tell is not by looking at what's there, but by considering what isn't. In this case, it's any notion of a world beyond Japan. No maps depict any region beyond the archipelago. Any sense of national or imperial humiliation has been thoroughly excised. Overall, the place is as static and lifeless as a butterfly trapped in amber. Even the people just move through their routines, never advancing this timeless existence.

After making a few mental recordings, the science team makes ready to abandon this sub-realm. In general, command is prepared to dismiss this network as an Essentialist curiosity, the logical end point of their loathsome ideology. That's when one of the technopaths bumps into a virtual apparition. More specifically, a daimyo from the nation's last days, carrying a large revolver and a ceremonial mono-sword. The incident is quick and disruptive; affronted, the simulated warlord draws his sword and issues his challenge. Desperate, the technopath cuts the signal, only to find that a physical being now stands before them. An android, to be precise, holding a cruder version of the same mono-sword. They manage to get a nasty cut in before the technopath can escape, but escape they do. Afterwards, as it becomes clear that at least some of these virtual beings have physical avatars, any further immersion in this infraverse is prohibited. Armed escorts will make sure that your remaining research parties won't be bothered by these errant spirits.

For the next few months, this seems to be the end of it. No further contact is made with the rhizome network, and its half-broken physical representations are either evaded or destroyed. Then, your people start to be rotated out for their mandatory leave. Given their multinational points of origin, they spread all across UN territory, bringing with them an undiscovered malady. For as they stared into the simulation, so too did the simulation stare into them.

In hindsight, the crisis which emerged could have been avoided in several different ways. Perhaps if our own infraverse had not been laid low by Eurasian disruption, it would not have been infected so easily by this Japanese virus. Or else, if we'd been more proactive in fighting vampiric escapism, this virus would not have found the fertile ground that it did. But this is all conjecture, of course; let us return to what actually happened.

As various members of the task force made their way back to civilization, they left a trail of dormant digital infections in their wake. Naturally, this was not discovered at the time, or else it would have had no chance to spread. Instead, it made its way into the more illicit and unsecure sections of the infraverse network, and from there began to seep into the infrastructure of the UN's many 'vampire castles'. It is here that the true crisis began.

A known weakness of vampiric enterprises is the way they tend to outsource their own maintenance. This means that there is a weak link between the simulations that are to be defended, and the actual parasites tasked to defend it. The Japanese virus would take advantage of this fact. At its core, it merely reprogrammed the non-sapient vampires into becoming its new thralls. As for the sapient, subcultural ones, they were enticed with the allure of dominion, of ruling over their prey. They would stand at the head of a new coalition of evil, a belligerent rot which would spread like a plague across UN territory. Given its inherent opposition to all that was Real and Imperfect, it would call itself The Negation.

The onslaught of the Negation came in a slow and methodical fashion. At first, none of our anti-terrorism agencies noticed anything out of the ordinary. Sure, the usual vampire attacks seemed to focus a bit more on print shops and sculpting centers rather than energy infrastructure, but they had done so before. No, the real surprise didn't come until October 31st, a most auspicious date.

On All Hallows Eve, the legions of death announced themselves. They were not zombies, oh no. The beings which had been multiplying exponentially were fully sapient avatars, constituting a diverse army of horrors. Its purpose, as we would soon learn, was to assimilate our realm into theirs, and to exact a bloody vengeance for daring to disturb them. In order to create the agents of our destruction, the Negation had taken its inspiration from history's blackest pages, distilling them into a unified nightmare. In practice, this meant the return of some of humanity's greatest monsters. In China, a modernized version of the Imperial Japanese Army would make landfall, reenacting a thousand historical massacres in the process. The US, meanwhile, would face the long-imagined fantasy of a nazi invasion force, complete with imitations of occult weaponry. Ironically, South America would be terrorized by the perfidious yanquis, helped along by a renewal of Casta's operations. Finally, our allies in Africa were assaulted by the hungry ghosts of colonialism, eager to lay claim to those few resources they had not already pilfered.

This brings us to the present day. Among the many nightmares we have been forced to confront, the scariest of all has been the specter of their coordination. These attacks have all come at once, robbing us of any chance to deploy your reserve forces fruitfully. Thus we are threatened by the death of a thousand cuts. While no single attack is so great as to be insurmountable, their sheer volume and frequency has made managing them utterly impossible.

To deal with the developing situation, which is just barely contained at present, the General Secretary has officially declared a state of emergency. This officially makes the Negation Crisis the first existential threat since the war. If the Internationale is to survive in any significant capacity, then we must now commit ourselves to drastic action.

The Negation Crisis has begun. A state of emergency has been declared. Stand by for further instructions.

In Other News

The arctic cyclones are especially bad this year, your relative lack of assets around that region is only a small silver lining, given the scope of the present crisis. As your cities burn, the Eurasians are still going at it on both fronts, though with decidedly less fervor than before. The battle of Voronezh is as good as over, and Moscow's logistics are now effectively isolated from those of Stalingrad. On the eastern front, meanwhile, the Council of Russia has won its first significant victory against the cosmo-fascists, halting their advance for the moment. If Eurasia suffers another dual setback like this, it will be rolled up by the end of next year. Another silver lining, you suppose. To make up for it, the Negation's campaign of terror has inadvertently enabled the resurgence of Casta. While they're not (yet) actively working together, you no longer have the assets to automatically resolve this secondary crisis. Something more will have to be done.

The Casta Crisis will no longer resolve automatically.

Spoiler: Author's Notes

With another crisis piling on top all of the other ones, it's clear that things can't go on this way any longer. Next turn will be a little different, to say the least. As usual, let me know if I've made any embarrassing mistakes in my writing or accounting. Your comments in general are always very welcome.